


Scarred and bruised

by fandomgurl77



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: :(, :O, ;), Anger, Childbirth, Coming Out, Confessions, Confusion, Death, Embarrassment, Family, Had this idea for a while, Happy Ending, He's innocent, Heartbreak, Jail, M/M, More tags will be added later, Multi, Nooo!, OHHH, Period-Typical Attitudes, Period-Typical Homophobia, Police, Prison, Rated M, Sad, Shunned, Suicide, Suicide Attempt, Tearjerker, Work, aaahhh!, chris is a bit of a playboy of sorts, cos why not?, everyone hates chris, hard work, i can't believe this, i'm in shock, kicked out, life story, no!!, poor Chris, reference to Dumbo 2019, story in the making, what crime?, what the?, why am I writing this?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:34:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 23
Words: 22,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25933741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomgurl77/pseuds/fandomgurl77
Summary: He was born into a wealthy, well-to-do family in Liverpool.As the youngest of nine siblings - two girls and seven boys - life has been particularly challenging for Chris Webster.How will the family and society react when they discover that he's different from everyone else?Note: I am NOT, nor do I intend to be, hateful in anyway towards anyone. However, to make the story sound as real as possible regarding societal views in the time setting, there's some language that I do not agree with and would never use in real life - I made it as tame as possible though.Rated M for violence and swearing.More tags will be added as the story progresses. :)
Relationships: Chris Webster & OC, Chris Webster/Original Male Character(s), Chris Webster/Thomas Barrow, Thomas Barrow/Richard Ellis (implied)
Kudos: 2





	1. Prologue

_June 20 th_

_1885_

_1:42 p.m._

_Suddenly, a woman, Joanne, cried out in pain from her hospital bed while her husband, Toby, and their eight children, waited outside._

_‘AAAHHH!!!’ she groaned as an intense contraction hit, causing a nurse to burst through the door._

_‘Mrs. Webster!’ she said in alarm, ‘What’s wrong?’_

_‘The…baby’, Joanne said weakly while panting, ‘It’s…on its…way.’_

_As if on cue, Joanne’s body was once again wracked with excruciating pain, causing her to scream loudly._

_‘There, there’, the nurse said reassuringly, ‘Everything’s going to be fine; you’ve been through this eight times before. Anyway, I’ll go and fetch the doctor.’_

_‘Thank…you’, Joanne panted._

**Three long hours later…**

_‘Keep going, Mrs. Webster’, the doctor said while sitting in a chair at the foot of the bed, ‘The baby’s almost out.’_

_‘Now, if you could give us one more push…’ the nurse said, ‘Push as if your life depends on it.’_

_Joanne nodded in response and grunted loudly as she bore down on her abdominal muscles until there was sweet relief when the pain subsided._

_A few seconds later, the air rang with the sound of crying._

_‘Congratulations, Mrs. Webster’, the doctor and nurse said simultaneously, ‘You have given birth to a healthy boy.’_

_‘Please…’ Joanne said weakly, ‘Please…just let…just let me see him.’_

_‘Ok’, the nurse said upon showing Joanne her newborn son wrapped in a blanket, ‘Here he is.’_

_‘Ohhh-‘ Joanne sobbed while crying tears of joy, ‘Th-thank y-you!’_

_‘I’ll just bring the rest of the family in, if you don’t mind’, the doctor said._

_‘Please do’, Joanne said, ‘They definitely need to see the newest addition to the family.’_

_‘Ok’, the doctor said before he opened the door to the hall and invited Toby and the others in._

_‘Well’, he and the nurse said, ‘It’s been a long wait, but your son finally arrived at 4:46 p.m.’_

_‘Thank you’, Toby said, ‘Come on, kids, let’s go and meet your new brother.’_

_‘Awww…’ the eldest daughter, Esmerelda, said while looking in the crib, ‘He’s adorable, Mother. Have you thought of a name yet?’_

_‘Hmmm…’ Joanne said, ‘Let me think here…’_

_It was then that Toby remembered something that she had told him on their honeymoon._

_‘Oh’, he said, ‘I think I may be able to help with this.’_

_‘Ok’, Joanne said, ‘What do you think he should be named?’_

_‘Just before I make any suggestions as to naming, Esmerelda’s question triggered me to have a flashback of the last night of our honeymoon._

_‘Sounds nice, dear’, Joanne said, ‘But what has that got to do with choosing a name?’_

_‘Well’, Toby said, ‘Do you recall what you said to me that night in bed before falling asleep?’_

_‘Hmm…’ Joanne said, ‘No. Actually, yes. Well, sort of. Wasn’t it something about my favourite consonant blend?’_

_‘Yes’, Toby said, ‘You promised to me there and then that if we ever had kids, at least one of their names would begin with the third and seventh letters of the alphabet.’_

_‘Ah, yes’, Joanne said before_ _glancing at her son and then back at her husband, ‘You know, I was just about to name him Clarence before you said that.’_

_‘Hmmm…’ Toby said, trying to think of a name that fits Joanne’s criteria, ‘What about Chad?’_

_‘I don’t think so’, Joanne said, ‘It sounds a bit cheap and silly for an upper-middle class family like us, in my opinion, anyway.’_

_‘Ok then’, Toby said, ‘How does Christian sound?’_

_‘Hmm…’ Joanne said, ‘I like how you’re thinking. However, we already have a son with that name.’_

_‘Oh, right’, Toby said, ‘Well, that’s all I can come up with in terms of names, unfortunately.’_

_Suddenly, Joanne had an idea inspired by a pet cat in her childhood._

_‘Hey’, she said, ‘I think I’ve got the perfect name for our son.’_

_‘Ok’, Toby said, ‘What is it?’_

_‘We’ll name him Christopher’, Joanne said, ‘Christopher Fitzgerald Webster.’_

_‘Hmm…Christopher…’ Toby said, ‘That’s an excellent name!’_


	2. Chapter 2

_August 1 st_

_1894_

‘Ha ha!’ an 11-year old boy shouted to his 9-year old brother as he ran across the huge backyard, ‘You’ll never catch me, Christopher!’

‘Oh, yes I will, Kevin’, Chris shouted as he chased him, ‘You just wait and see!’

Meanwhile, Esmerelda was in the flower garden with her younger sister, Janice, when Kevin came thundering in, unintentionally trampling Joanne’s prized roses.

‘Kevin!’ Esmerelda said, ‘Look what you’ve done to Mother’s roses!’

‘Oh…’ Kevin said upon looking down at the flattened and broken flowers on the ground, ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to…’

‘I’m telling’, Esmerelda said before making a beeline for the house.

‘No!’ Kevin begged, ‘Please don’t…’

‘What’s going on?’ Chris asked Esmerelda as she walked past.

‘Kevin ruined Mother’s roses and I’m going to tell her about it’, she said.

‘I see’, Chris said before thinking, _‘This’ll be fun to watch.’_

‘KEVIN!!!’ Joanne said with an angry expression on her face, ‘Esmerelda told me that you **ruined** my roses in the flower garden!’

‘I’m sorry!’ Kevin said while looking down, ‘It was an accident. I’ll do anything to make it up for you, I promise.’

‘Well then’, Joanne said while pointing up the hall, ‘I’ll tell you what you can do, and that’s going and sitting in your bedroom for half an hour to think about what you’ve done!’

‘Yes, Mother’, Kevin said disappointedly as he walked up the hall and disappeared into his bedroom.

It was then that Joanne heard muffled giggling from behind the patio door.

‘I know you’re there, Christopher’, she said, ‘Come out and reveal yourself.’

‘What do you want, Mother?’ Christopher asked as he walked into the Day Room.

‘Since you seem to think that this whole ordeal with the roses is hilarious, you can go up and join your brother in the bedroom’, Joanne said.

‘But’, Chris said, ‘We don’t get along very well in close proximity.’

‘Well, maybe you can use this as an opportunity to become friends’, Joanne said, ‘You argue with each other too much anyway.’

‘Ok, Mother’, Chris said before following in Kevin’s footsteps, ‘Will do.’

During the next half hour, the bedroom had been eerily quiet, minus the message of _“I hate you!”_ when Chris walked in and close the door, to which he had responded _“You too!”_

However, given the circumstances, Chris decided it was time to make amends with his older brother.

‘Hey, Kevin’, he said, ‘I want to tell you something.’

‘What?’ Kevin barked.

‘I’m sorry’, Chris said, ‘For today. I should never have laughed at you being told off, not to mention the comment I made half an hour ago about hating you.’

‘So?’ Kevin asked, ‘What’s it to you?’

‘I was hoping we could be friends and start anew’, Chris replied.

‘Hmm’, Kevin said, ‘I suppose so.’

‘So’, C’, Chris said, ‘Is it a deal?’

‘Yes’, Kevin said, ‘It’s a deal.’

‘But first’, Chris said, ‘Let’s go and apologise to Mother, together.’

‘Ok’, Kevin said as they opened the door and walked down the hall.


	3. Chapter 3

At dawn the next morning, Chris was talking in the hall to the butler, Terrance Enderson.

‘Morning, Enderson’, he said.

‘Same to you, Christopher’, Enderson said, ‘I’m just going downstairs to help in the kitchen, to ensure everything is prepared for breakfast at 8:20.’

‘Speaking of that’, Chris said, ‘Since I’m awake, I might go down for a bite to eat myself.’

‘Ok then’, Enderson said before continuing on his way, ‘Suit yourself. Just remember not to eat too much.’

‘I won’t’, Chris said, ‘See you later.’

However, when he opened the lounge door, he soon realised he wasn’t the only member of the family who was awake.

‘Greetings, Christopher’, his 16-year old brother, Sotheby, said, ‘May I ask what you’re doing in here?’

‘I woke early, Sotheby, so I decided to come down for an early morning snack’, Chris said.

‘Well, luckily I have just the thing’, Sotheby said when he placed a small bowl of pork crackling on the table, ‘Here, help yourself to some scratchings.’

‘Thanks, Sotheby’, Chris said when he sat on the couch and picked a small piece up, ‘Where did you get this from?’

‘Easy’, Sotheby said, ‘I went into the kitchen and asked the cook to prepare a bowl of these and send it up.’

‘I see’, Chris said, ‘Well then, you can go and report that these are delicious after breakfast.’

Little did they know, while they were sitting on the couch, that the day was going to turn ugly in the worst possible way…

‘Mother’, Esmerelda said when she got up from the table in the dining room after lunch, ‘I don’t feel well.’

‘What’s wrong, dear?’ Joanne asked.

Suddenly, as if on cue, Esmerelda coughed violently into a napkin, leaving bright red spots on the clean white fabric.

‘Goodness me!’ Joanne said in a panic, ‘You better go and lie down right away! I’ll bring the doctor over as soon as the table is cleared.

‘Ok, Mother’, Esmerelda said before making a beeline for her bedroom and lying on the bed.

Throughout the afternoon and into the evening, Esmerelda’s condition rapidly deteriorated; between 3:30 and 6:00, she was soiling at least two cloths or napkins every forty-five minutes.

‘Mrs. Webster’, Dr. Anderson said when he emerged from the bedroom, ‘I’m afraid your daughter has contracted…tuberculosis.’

‘What??’ a horrified Joanne asked, ‘Is there anything that can be done?’

The doctor lowered his head before saying, ‘I’m afraid that her condition is too advanced for her to be saved.’

‘No…’ Joanne sobbed, ‘Not my precious baby!’

Meanwhile, Chris just so happed to peek into the bedroom as his sister took her last pained breath before falling silent.

 _‘Goodness!’_ he thought before rushing out the door, ‘Mother!’

‘What’s wrong, dear?’ Joanne asked.

‘It’s Esmerelda’, Chris sobbed, ‘I t-think that she’s…’

‘Come on’, Joanne said, ‘Let’s go see her.’

However, she was not prepared for the scene that confronted her in the bedroom.

‘ESMERELDA!!!’ she exclaimed before bursting into tears, ‘NOOOO!!!’

‘I…I s-saw her take her l-last breath’, Chris sobbed.

‘Why?’ Joanne sobbed, ‘Why did it h-have to be one of u-us? S-she was p-perfectly healthy just y-yesterday.’

‘I know’, Chris sobbed, ‘She w-was the eldest child as w-well at 17.’

‘Yes’, Sotheby sobbed while standing in the doorway, ‘I guess that title belongs to m-me now, since I’m the second- eldest.’

‘Of course you are, Sotheby’, Joanne said before standing up, ‘I’ll go and tell Enderson to inform everyone downstairs that we’ll be in mourning until further notice.’

**A few days later…**

‘May she rest in peace’, the congregation inside the local church said simultaneously while the coffin was carried out with the bereaved family following closely behind.

‘Goodbye, Esmerelda!’, Chris sobbed before bursting into tears as the coffin was lowered into a grave in the church cemetery, ‘We’ll m-miss you!’

However, no-one had been more affected by the death than Joanne.

‘I think t-the whole town has been a-affected in one w-way or an-another’, she sobbed, ‘However, she is w-with God now., looking down on us from Heaven.’

‘Yes’, Toby said, ‘We’ll all get to see her again someday.’

‘Really?’ Chris asked, ‘Do you really think so?’

‘Yes’, Toby replied, ‘The Creator loves all of his children equally.’

However, this moment would come back to haunt Chris in a few years…


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For this story, I'm assuming that the minimum drinking age is 18, since it is where I come from.

_June 15 th_

_1899_

‘I can’t believe it, Mother!’ 13-year old Chris said to Joanne while sitting in the Day Room, ‘Sotheby’s got a job at a 5-star hotel!’

‘Yes’, Joanne said, ‘From what I’ve heard, the founder of that hotel chain is a famous business tycoon named Jacob Pilkington.’

‘I would like to go there one day’, Chris said, ‘Even if it is just to visit him.’

‘I was thinking the same thing’, Joanne said, ‘We should go and visit before Christmas.’

‘Ok then!’ Chris said, ‘It’s a deal!’

‘But, for now, I have some stuff to do up in the bedroom’, Joanne said before leaving the room.

While in town a couple of months later, Chris met a young man by the name of Bradley outside a pub.

‘Whoa’, Bradley said just as Chris was about to enter, ‘You’re too young to go in there.’

‘What?’ Chris asked, ‘How come?’

‘Listen here’, Bradley replied, ‘The law says you have to be 18 or older to go into a pub. And you’re only 13.’

‘Yes’, Chris said disappointedly, ‘I guess I’ll just have to wait another five years or so.’

‘I think so too’, Bradley said, ‘However, I know the perfect place to go.’

‘Ok’, Chris said, ‘You lead the way.’

‘Right’, Bradley said as they came to an empty lot obscured by trees, ‘Here we are.’

‘Where are we?’ Chris asked.

‘This is one of my favourite places to come to escape everyday life for a while’, Bradley replied before waggling his eyebrows, ‘It’s also hidden from view by trees on all four sides.’

‘Hold on a minute!’ Chris said, remembering those “special nights” over the years when his father did this to his mother before going to bed together, ‘What is _that_ supposed to mean?’

‘You’ll come to understand as you get older, Chris’, Bradley said before confessing, ‘I like you.’

‘Me too’, Chris said, ‘We could be good friends, you and I.’

‘No’, Bradley said, ‘I meant I _like_ you, as in want to be _with_ you.’

‘What?’ Chris asked with a confused voice and expression, ‘What do you mean?’

‘Come on, Chris’, Bradley said as he lightly stroked his hand, ‘Don’t deny the fact that you _want me_ too.’

‘Hmm…’ Chris said, ‘I don’t know. I mean, the church says…’

‘To hell with the church and its teachings!’ Bradley said, ‘I’ve heard it all before.’

Chris had no idea what came over him after Bradley had stopped speaking, but next thing he knew, they were kissing in the moonlight.

‘See?’ Bradley said, ‘That wasn’t so hard, was it.’

‘I suppose not’, Chris said before realising something about himself.

 _‘My goodness!’_ he thought, _‘To hell with what everyone else thinks; this is who I am.’_

‘Chris?’ Bradley asked, ‘Are you home?’

‘Yes’, Chris said before they kissed again, ‘I can’t help it! I’m in love with you!’

‘Shhh!’ Bradley whispered, ‘Do you want the public to find out about us?’

‘Why shouldn’t they know?’ Chris said, ‘Come on, I’ll introduce you to my parents.’

‘You will do no such thing!’ Bradley said, ‘It’s too dangerous beyond the trees. I mean, what if someone saw? They’d report us immediately…and don’t get me started on the police…’

‘So what if they found out?’, Chris asked, ‘It’s not like we have committed a crime or anything…have we?’

‘Oh, how little you know about this cruel world’, Bradley replied, ‘How very little indeed…’


	5. Chapter 5

At 11:00 a.m. the next day, Chris was called into the Day Room by his parents.

‘Christopher’, Joanne said when she opened the bedroom door, ‘I and Toby want to have a word with you in the Day Room.’

‘Ok, Mother’, Chris said as he followed her down the hall and stairs.

‘Greetings, Father’, he said to Toby upon entering the room while Joanne closed the door, ‘You said you wanted to speak with me about something.’

‘Yes’, Toby said, ‘It’s about yesterday.’

‘I see’, Chris said, ‘If you’re worried about it, I just want to say that I didn’t go into the pub by myself.’

‘Good’, Toby said, ‘However, that is not what we summoned you here for…’

‘Yes’, Joanne said, ‘We have concerns about who you are making friends with, that’s all.’

‘What do you mean?’ Chris asked.

‘Well’, Joanne said, ‘When I and your father were out for a walk this morning, we heard our friend, Mrs. Kingston, saying to her neighbour that her son, Bradley, met you outside the pub yesterday afternoon.’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘That would be correct.’

‘However’, Toby said, ‘She also noted that he hadn’t returned home until approximately 10:15; come to think of it, you weren’t back here until half an hour later.’

‘Your father’s right, dear’, Joanne said, ‘What in the world could have _possibly_ kept you out _that_ late?’

‘Um…’ Chris said while thinking of a believable answer, ‘We were talking and lost track of time, you know, telling each other stories and stuff.’

It was then that Joanne started to become more anxious.

‘Hmm…’ she said, ‘Are you sure? Because there have been “rumours” in the town…’

‘What “rumours”?’ Chris asked.

‘Oh, nothing too much’, Toby replied, ‘It’s just that…people are saying…that Bradley is…well…that he _may_ have, ahem, “certain tendencies”; tendencies that we don’t want you exposed to.’

‘What do you mean?’ Chris asked with the slightest amount of fear in his voice.

‘Well, for starters, he doesn’t seem to be interested in women, like other young men his age – preferring to _almost exclusively_ stay in the company of men instead’, Toby replied.

‘Exactly’, Joanne said while recalling an incident the previous Sunday evening, ‘I even witnessed him watching a group of young men during Communion in church last week! I was beyond horrified when we left after the service that this… _sin_ …could be happening right under our noses without us even knowing!’

Chris felt a sense of guilt and shame upon hearing this from his mother.

‘I can’t believe it!’ he said in a horrified tone.

Me neither’, Toby said, ‘He desperately needs to be reminded of what the Bible says about this before it gets worse; that he won’t be entering Heaven if he doesn’t repent.’

‘I see’, Chris said before thinking, _‘If that is how you feel about people like us, then I don’t want to know you.’_

‘So’, Joanne said, ‘Now that you know, we don’t want you to go anywhere alone with him, lest you fall into the same trap.’

‘Ok’, Chris said, ‘I’ll keep that in mind.’

After the church service that Sunday, Chris told Joanne that he would be in the bathroom for a few minutes.

‘Mother’, he said, ‘I’ll just be in the bathroom. I won’t be long.’

‘Ok’, Joanne said before he left the main hall.

‘Glad you could make it, Chris’, Bradley said while standing beside one of the two sinks in the small room, ‘Sorry I missed your birthday a few days ago.’

‘It’s ok’, Chris said, ‘However, that card you sent me yesterday was a nice surprise.’

‘Yes’, Bradley said while looking around to make sure no-one else was in the room before whispering, ‘I made it with love especially for you.’

‘Thanks’, Chris said while blushing, ‘It definitely made my day.’

‘Good to hear’, Bradley said before they kissed.

‘I love you’, Chris said.

‘Me too’, Bradley said.

‘However…’ Chris said, ‘I’ve grown slightly weary of our “friendship”.’

‘What do you mean?’ Bradley asked.

‘It’s just that…my parents…’ Chris replied, ‘They’ve become suspicious.’

‘I see’, Bradley said.

‘Exactly’, Chris said, ‘They talked it over with me yesterday, you know, about those “rumours” and stuff.’

‘What?’ Bradley asked, ‘How did they find out?’

‘I’m not sure exactly, but they have’, Chris said.

‘This is unbelievable!’ Bradley said.

Suddenly, there was a sound at the door, causing them to separate.

‘Quick’, Chris whispered, ‘Act natural.’

‘On to it’, Bradley said when he turned the tap on and started washing his hands while Chris did the same just as the door opened.

‘Oh, hello, Pastor Keith’, Chris said, ‘Good service tonight, I hear.’

‘Good evening, Christopher Webster’, Keith said before looking at Bradley, ‘And to you as well, Bradley Kingston.’

‘Yes’, Chris said as he opened the door slightly, ‘Well, I need to go; my folks are waiting for me.’


	6. Chapter 6

_August 16_

_1900_

_2:45 p.m._

_‘Oh shit!’_ , Chris thought while his parents towered over him as he sat in the rocking chair in the Day Room, faces burning red with rage, _‘I’m fucked.’_

‘You…disgusting…piece of shit!!’ Joanne shouted as Toby shoved him back into the chair, ‘I cannot believe what I saw you doing yesterday with that…Bradley boy!!!’

‘It…it’s not what it looks like!’ Chris said, ‘We are good friends and _nothing else_!’

‘ **LIAR**!!’ Joanne shouted, ‘I and Toby both **saw** you two kissing behind the bakery as we walked past!!’

‘Mother, father, I promise!’ Chris said, ‘There was _nothing_ of the sort going on yesterday!’

‘Hmm…’ Joanne said, ‘I’m still not convinced.’

‘Your mother’s right’, Toby said, ‘Just tell us the truth and we’ll leave. It’s as simple as that.’

‘I _have_ told you the truth!’ Chris said before being dragged into an upright position by the shirt.

‘We can do this all day if you want, scumbag!’ Toby shouted, ‘Now, man up and tell us what really happened!’

‘Once again’, Chris began when he rolled his eyes before being cut off, ‘Once again, there was **not** …’

‘RIGHT!!!’ Toby said, hands balled in fists of rage, matching his expression to a T, ‘If you can’t tell us the truth **right now** , I’ll just have to assume that you’re…’

‘What?’ Chris asked out of fear as the situation became grimmer by the second.

‘You’re one…’ Joanne replied, ‘Of… _them_.’

‘I am not!!’ Chris shouted, ‘I **know** that God specifically forbids that sort of thing!!’

Both Toby and Joanne were taken back by this response from their son.

‘Christopher…’ Toby said, ‘How do you think we’d feel if you died without repenting? Knowing that you were suffering eternal torture in Hell every second of our lives?’

 _‘God would_ never _do that to any of his children!’_ Chris thought before saying, ‘It would be absolutely horrible…in fact, life would be torturous.’

‘Well then’, Toby said, ‘Why don’t you turn from those evil ways starting from now?’

Tired and frustrated, Chris finally spoke his mind a few long seconds later.

‘You know what, father?’ he said, ‘I don’t give a damn.’

In response to this, Toby roughly shoved and pinned Chris against the wall.

‘ **What** did you just say!!?’ he shouted in a fit of rage.

‘I said…’ Chris replied, ‘I don’t give a damn about what you think!!’

This earned him a punch to the nose, causing it to bleed.

‘GET OUT, pansy!!!’ Toby screamed while pointing to the door, ‘We don’t want your **vileness** around here anymore!!’

‘Ok, ok!’ Chris said, having been enraged and hurt by the slur, ‘If that’s what you feel, then I’m leaving, effective as of now!’

‘What’s wrong, Christopher?’ the butler said as he stood in the doorway of the bedroom.

‘Oh, Enderson’, Chris said, ‘It…it’s nothing, really.’

However, the older man could sense that something was indeed _very_ wrong.

‘Come on, Christopher’, he said, ‘Something’s got you feeling low. What is it?’

‘Well’, Chris said while wiping his nose - which had stopped bleeding by now - with a handkerchief, ‘If you must know, my parents hate me.’

‘Whatever makes you say that?’ the butler asked in shock.

‘You know my friend, Bradley, right?’ Chris asked.

‘Yes’, Enderson said, ‘You two have a “thing”, don’t you?’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘Anyway, my parents were interrogating me in the Day Room a while ago about it and said how “wrong” and “evil” it is.’

‘I see’, Enderson said in disbelief at what he had just heard.

‘But they didn’t just stop there’, Chris said, ‘When I refused to tell them the truth about sharing a kiss behind the bakery yesterday, father pinned me against the wall and punched me in the nose, which is why it was bleeding a few minutes ago.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ a mortified Enderson said.

‘But it gets worse’, Chris said, ‘Immediately after doing that to me, he yelled at me to leave immediately, before using a certain five-letter word.’

‘What was this word?’ Enderson asked.

‘Well’, Chris replied, ‘How’s about I spell it out for you?’

‘Ok’, Enderson said.

‘The word, or should I say, slur, he used against me was…’ Chris said before whispering, ‘P…A…N…S…Y.’

Upon hearing this, the butler’s jaw dropped in utter horror and despair; this had proven to be the last straw.

‘That’s it!!’ he said with an expression of anger on his face, ‘I’ll be handing in my resignation tonight. If they can treat you that way, then I don’t want to work or live here.’

‘Good’, Chris said, ‘Because I’m leaving tonight as well.’

**11:09 p.m…**

‘Well’, Enderson said to Chris while they were standing on the platform at the station, ‘This is it.’

‘I’ll miss you’, Chris said, ‘I wish it didn’t have to end this way…’

‘Me neither’, Enderson said, ‘Where are you going anyway?’

‘Hmm, good question…’ Chris said just as the 11:10 train to York pulled in, ‘I know; I’m going to York to start anew.’

‘Ok’, Enderson said, ‘Goodbye, Christopher. Remember, you can always send me letters if you want to.’

‘Got it, Enderson, Chris said before disappearing into the night, Goodbye.’


	7. Chapter 7

_October 25_

_1903_

_10:15 p.m. (approximately)_

‘Hey, there, a man said as he approached Chris sitting on a park bench, ‘Fancy seeing you here while I’m on holiday!’

‘Oh, my goodness!’ Chris exclaimed, ‘Bradley! I can’t believe it’s you!’

‘So’, Bradley said, ‘How has life been for you these last few years?’

‘Pretty good, actually’, Chris said as he stood up, ‘I’m renting a nice flat just around the corner.’

‘I see’, Bradley said, ‘Maybe we could go there sometime, you know, perhaps I could stay the night?’

‘Hmm…’ Chris thought, ‘Yes, I’d enjoy that. It’s a deal.’

‘Ok’, Bradley said before remembering something, ‘Anyway, though, I was wondering…if you could come with me down the road?’

‘Sure’, Chris said as they walked through the trees to an intersection and crossed the road.

‘It’s just down here…’ Bradley said before they came to a building that had its front windows boarded up, ‘I only just discovered this place tonight.’

‘Let’s go inside’, Chris said.

‘Yes’, Bradley said before he knocked a secret pattern on the door, which then opened briefly for them to continue inside before shutting again.

‘Whoa!’ Chris said upon discovering that he was in a nightclub for men like him, ‘This place is amazing!’

‘That’s what I was thinking’, Bradley said, ‘I went to one back home the night after I turned 21 with a group of guys from high school.’

‘I see’, Chris said.

‘Anyway’, Bradley said as he took Chris by the hand, ‘Shall we dance?’

‘Ok’, Chris said, ‘You lead the way.’

**Twenty minutes later…**

‘Thank you for bringing me here tonight’, Chris said as they moved around on the dance floor, ‘This must be the best night of my young life.’

‘Mine too’, Bradley said.

‘I love you.’ Chris said.

‘Me too’, Bradley said before they quickly kissed, ‘I can’t believe that we’ve finally found a place where we are safe to be who we truly are.’

‘I know’, Chris said, ‘It feels like a dream come true.’

Suddenly, there was a faint sound coming from the other side of the front door followed by panicked shouting of ‘Police! Police!’

‘Fuck!’ Bradley said, ‘We’ve been stung!’

As if on cue, the door burst open with a loud boom, causing widespread panic throughout the club as men in black uniforms and helmets rushed in.

‘You’re all under arrest for homosexual activity’, one of the officers said as groups of patrons were being led outside to the wagons that awaited them.

‘See?’ Bradley said, ‘Now you know why we had to stay hidden all those years ago when you confessed your love for me. It’s also why I refused to meet your parents.’

However, Chris was completely frozen with fear.

‘Chris?’ Bradley asked, ‘Are you home?’

‘What-t are t-they g-going to d-do with us?’ Chris asked nervously just as an officer approached them.

‘Come on, perverts, let’s move!’ he said as they were led to the door, ‘We’re going to the station.’

‘The Court finds you…GUILTY on all charges!’ the judge said as he banged the gavel down, ‘You are hereby sentenced to two years hard labour!’

‘Well’, Chris said to Bradley, I suppose this is it; we’re going to be locked away for two years.’

‘Yes’, Bradley said, ‘My parents will forever hate me if they find out about this.’

‘I know’, Chris said, ‘My whole family has shunned me except for my eldest brother, Sotheby, not to mention my parents are very strictly religious. You know, believing in eternal suffering in Hell for sinners and stuff.’


	8. Chapter 8

‘LIGHTS OUT!!!’ a prison guard shouted from the corridor and the door of vertical metal bars slammed into the hole in the wall before the room was engulfed in pitch black.

‘Goodnight, Bradley’, Chris whispered from his bunk, ‘I don’t know how the hell we’re going to get through this, but we will, I promise you.’

‘I’m not exactly sure either’, Bradley whispered, ‘Anyway, this is the first night out of many more to come, so we may as well get used to it now.’

‘Yes’, Chris whispered before being interrupted, ‘Anyway…’

‘Would you two just **shut up** and go to sleep?’ their cellmate, Todd, asked from the other side of the room.

‘Sorry, Todd’, Chris whispered, ‘Anyway, goodnight.’

‘You too, Chris’, Bradley whispered, ‘See you in the morning.’

_‘Ugh…’_ Chris thought upon sitting at a table in the cafeteria with a tray before saying, ‘This is the _worst_ meal I’ve ever seen!’

‘I know’, Todd said when he picked a hardened piece of bread up off his own tray, ‘Seriously? Hardened bread and soup? Who could have thought of serving this crap?’

‘You’ll get used to the so-called “crap” around here’, another man by the name of Rodger said, ‘Just calm down and **eat**!’

‘You’re right Mr….um…’, Chris said, ‘What was your name again?’

‘The name’s Rodger’, the other man said before taking a bite of the bread he was holding, ‘What’s your name?’

‘It’s Chris’, Chris said, ‘Chris Webster.’

‘Really?’ Rodger said with a shocked voice, ‘Because I vividly remember having a classmate with the same name around the early to mid-1890s.’

Upon hearing this, Chris remembered a boy in the senior class who looked and spoke exactly like Rodger.

‘Good heavens’, he said, ‘It is you, Rodger!’

‘Yes’, Rodger said, ‘I ended up here a few months ago for murdering a young woman in the park. What did you end up here for?’

‘Well…’ Chris said, ‘I…don’t want to talk about it, really…’

‘Come on, Chris’, Rodger said, ‘We’re all guilty of something in here; every last one of us.’

‘All right then’, Chris said before whispering, ‘I was arrested and charged with having…“illegal tendencies.”’

‘Oh’, Rodger said when he realised what this meant, ‘I see. You’re…’

Chris nodded in response.

‘Yes’, he said, ‘‘Tis sad, but true; got two years for it.’

‘Anyway’, Rodger said, ‘The lunch break is almost over; we’d better finish up.’

‘Agreed’, Chris said.

**Later that afternoon…**

‘Phew!’ Chris said upon finally breaking a rock apart with a pickaxe in the yard, ‘Glad that’s over; I was starting to think that it would _never_ break!’

‘There’s plenty more where that came from’, a guard said when he released more rocks down a chute to land in front of him. ‘Have fun smashing these up.’

‘Oh, come on!’ Chris said, ‘I’ve been at this all afternoon already; I’m so tired I could fall over at any moment.’

‘Well then’, the guard said, ‘This will be the perfect way to wind down before dinner.’

‘Ok then’, Chris said before getting back to work.

Meanwhile, Bradley had completed his work for the day and was heading inside when he saw Chris bashing one of the rocks.

‘Hard work, isn’t it?’ he said.

‘Tell me about it’, Chris said, ‘I’ve spent a good few hours out here doing this, and I’m not even half way through yet.’

‘I see’, Bradley said before continuing on his way, ‘Well, see you later.’

‘You too’, Chris said.

**6:05 p.m.….**

_‘Finally’_ , Chris said upon walking into the large communal shower room, _‘Time for a shower.’_

‘Agreed’, Bradley said when he turned the tap on, ‘Blimey, what a day!’

‘Yes’, Chris said as he stepped under the stream of water, ‘Gosh, that’s just what I needed.’

However, a few minutes later while washing himself, the bar of soap slipped out of his hand and onto the floor.

 _‘Oh…great!’_ he thought, _‘Just great!’_

 _‘Ohh…’_ Bradley thought when he noticed him reaching down to pick it up, _‘I’d be careful, if I were you…’_

Indeed, another man on the far side of the room had noticed that Chris was a prime target; so he decided to take the opportunity.

‘Chris!’ Bradley said upon noticing what was about to happen, ‘Watch out!’

Fortunately, Chris had managed to pick the soap up of the floor and sprang up just in time, causing the other guy to stumble backwards into the wall on the opposite side of the room.

‘Aaahhh…’ he whimpered weakly due to the throbbing ache between his legs before shouting, ‘You bloody bastard! You’ve **severed** my cock, I’m sure!!’

‘Oh well, you deserve it!’ Chris said, ‘I knew what you were going to do to me, and it isn’t pretty.’


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: Depictions of murder and of suicide

By 11:00 the next morning, a couple of guards had discovered a grotesque sight in one of the ground-floor cells; a man had been savagely beaten to death and had his throat slashed!

‘Goodness me!’ one of them, Brian, said while looking at the lifeless body lying in a pool of blood, ‘He’s been murdered!’

‘Yes’, his colleague and brother, Ethan, said, ‘However, I didn’t hear anything down this end either last night or this morning which would’ve been cause for alarm.’

‘Come to think of it’, Brian said, ‘I didn’t sense that anything was amiss either.’

‘Anyway though’, Ethan said, ‘There must have been one heck of a struggle in here, going by the blood spatters on the walls and floor…’

‘I know’, Brian said, ‘However, we’ll need to remove the body and clean this mess up before the cell can be used again.’

‘I agree’, Ethan said, ‘I wonder who could’ve done this?’

Meanwhile, Chris had just paid Rodger the small weekly fee in protection money when he was told about what happened to the man in the shower room the previous evening.

‘I “paid that guy a visit” this morning for you’, Rodger said, ‘Let’s just say…I _don’t_ think he’ll be an issue anymore…’

‘Thanks for getting him off my back’, Chris said, ‘Goodness knows what could’ve happened if it weren’t for you…’

‘That’s what I’m here for’, Rodger said, ‘To prevent any of those sorts of creeps from harming you for as long as you keep paying the weekly fee.’

‘Of course’, Chris said, ‘Besides, that’s what friends are supposed to do, right?’

‘Indeed’, Rodger said.

_12 November 1904_

_1:15 p.m._

‘Sotheby!!’ Chris said to his brother in one of the Meeting Rooms, ‘I haven’t seen you for years!’

‘Me neither’, Sotheby said, ‘I decided to come and visit since I’m passing through on my way back up north.’

‘That reminds me’, Chris said, ‘How’s the job at the hotel?’

‘It’s been good’, Sotheby said, ‘I get to meet new people every day as a room cleaner.’

‘I see’, Chris said, ‘And what about the folks back home?’

‘They’re doing well too’, Sotheby said, ‘They were most grateful to see me when I was there yesterday; don’t worry though, I didn’t mention that you are in jail.’

‘Phew!’ Chris said, ‘Thank goodness for that.’

‘Anyway’, Sotheby said, ‘You’ll be happy to know that I’m paying the weekly rent for the flat until you are released.’

‘Thanks, Sotheby’, Chris said.

‘No problem’, Sotheby said, ‘However, I need to get going if I want to be back by 5:00 tonight.’

‘Ok then’, Chris said, ‘Goodbye.’

‘Farewell’, Sotheby said before he left the room.

**Later that night…**

‘BRADLEY!!’ Chris sobbed upon finding his lifeless body hanging from the ceiling of their cell at the end of a rope of bedsheets that were tied together, ‘NOOO!!!’

‘What’s going on in here…’ a guard began before he noticed what had happened, ‘Ohh…’

‘Ethan’, he said while unlocking the door, ‘There’s been a Code Red in here.’

‘Yep’, Ethan said, ‘He’s hanged himself using a makeshift rope.’


	10. Chapter 10

_January 31_

_1907_

_2:00 p.m._

Suddenly the air rang with the sound of shattering glass as a jar of an unknown substance fell onto the cobblestone path, followed by voices shouting and screaming.

‘Get him!!!’ one of the men, Reginald, screamed as his two friends roughly grabbed and dragged a shaking and terrified Chris to him from a few long metres down the road.

‘WHY DID YOU DO THIS!!!?’ Reginald growled in his face, ‘My family dinner’s **RUINED** because of what you did…RUINED!!!’

I’m s-sorry!’ Chris pleaded, ‘It w-was an accid-dent, I s-swear!’

‘It was an accident…’ Reginald said mockingly in a childish voice before shouting, ‘Apology NOT accepted!! The contents of _that_ jar – the one that **you** broke by bumping into me before scarpering like a little boy running for his Mummy – cost **me** a small fortune at the store around the fucking corner!!!’

‘Well then, may I suggest that you calm down before returning to buy another one, like a normal person would?’ Chris said, ‘That would be the smart thing to do.’

‘Hmm…’ Reginald said while contemplating this suggestion, ‘Maybe I should…’

 _‘Exactly’_ , Chris thought.

‘Except that was THE LAST JAR THEY HAD IN STOCK!!!’ Reginald screamed while looking like he could explode at any moment, ‘Meaning I’ll have to wait **at least** another fucking week before I can get a replacement!!!’

‘Look’, Chris said, ‘I said I was sorry. Can you just get over it and accept what has happened? Besides, it’s not like your meal won’t be special without it now, will it?’

Suddenly, Reginald grabbed Chris by the throat and slammed him hard into the wall of a nearby building.

‘You think you’re so clever, don’t you, city boy?’ Reginald sneered, ‘Insulting a person’s family with your smart remarks.’

‘But it’s the truth…’ Chris said before being shoved to the ground, nearly hitting his head in the process.

‘SHUT UP, WANKER!!’ Reginald shouted, ‘I WILL **NOT** STAND TO BE INSULTED BY YOU OR YOUR WORDS!!!’

‘Alright already!’ Chris said, ‘You’ve said enough about this.’

‘Yes, yes I have’, Reginald sneered as he pulled Chris off the ground by the shirt, ‘Now, listen here, Nancy-boy. I know who and what you are, and if this happens again, I will have **no** hesitation in calling the police! Understand?’

Chris swallowed nervously before answering, ‘Yes, sir.’

‘Good’, Reginald said before shoving him away, ‘Now, get out, you vile creature!!’

However, on the way home to his flat, Chris was almost killed by a large rock that someone had thrown from a second-storey rooftop.

‘Beat it, lavender!!’ the rock-thrower shouted, ‘We don’t want your kind around here!’

‘I’ll _fucking_ kill you, q-' another person began before being mercifully cut off when Chris locked the door to his flat and walked upstairs to the bedroom, where he sat on the bed and looked at a photo of his parents.

‘Why?’ he sobbed, ‘Why was I even born? Everyone hates me and wants me dead! Even you – my _own parents_ – don’t want me around anymore; you’re adamant I will burn forever in Hell because of who I am! Well, congratulations everyone, you’ve got your wish…‘cause I’m leaving!’


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: Mild depiction of attempted suicide

Later that evening, Sotheby had just returned to the flat from the bakery when he heard an unusual sound coming from the bedroom.

 _‘What was that?’_ he thought as he put the item he had just purchased on the kitchen table before running up the stairs while thinking with dread, _‘Oh my, I hope that it wasn’t…’_

However, he wasn’t prepared for the sight before him upon opening the bedroom door; Chris was hanging from the ceiling via a rope!

‘CHRISTOPHER!!!’ he screamed in utter horror before tackling him onto the bed.

‘Come on, mate’, he said to his brother, ‘Wake up!’

However, there was no response.

‘Please, Christopher…just, please…open your eyes…’ Sotheby sobbed with tears in his eyes, ‘I beg of you…’

Still no response.

‘I…I c-can’t bel-lieve it!!’ Sotheby sobbed before bursting into tears, ‘My only surviving b-brother…g-gone!’

**Fifteen minutes later…**

‘I suppose I’ll just have to eat this on my own tonight’, Sotheby sobbed as he sat down at the kitchen table with a plate of food, even though there was enough for two.

Meanwhile, Chris had woken up feeling disorientated and confused about where he was.

 _‘Ugh…’_ he thought, _‘What happened?’_

 _‘Oh well, it must have been a dream’_ , he thought before he walked out of the bedroom and began descending the stairs.

‘Man’, Sotheby sobbed, ‘I don’t know how I’m going to eat all this food.’

‘Let me help you’, Chris said as he entered the kitchen.

‘Christopher!!’ Sotheby exclaimed, ‘You’re alive!!’

‘Of course I’m alive, silly!’ Chris said, ‘Anyway, I just woke up from this amazing dream…’

‘That wasn’t a dream, Christopher’, Sotheby said, ‘You very nearly died; if I hadn’t been there at the time I was…’

‘What?’ Chris asked, ‘How could this be?’

‘You had hanged yourself from the bedroom ceiling’, Sotheby replied, ‘You’re incredibly lucky that you’re still alive at all.’

It was then that Chris realised the full extent of what had happened in the bedroom.

‘Oh my!’ he gasped, ‘I’m so sorry! I didn’t know what I was thinking; I…I felt so hopeless…and…’

‘Anyway’, he said, ‘Thanks for rescuing me; I appreciate it.’

‘No, no, Christopher’, Sotheby said, ‘You’re my younger brother, albeit the _only_ surviving one, so I have a duty to ensure that you’re not in danger.’

Chris’ eyes widened in shock and disbelief upon hearing this.

‘What??’ he asked.

‘Well’, Sotheby replied, ‘It all started in 1902; I read in the obituaries that Kieran, Christian and Peter had all died of suspected food poisoning, while Tyler and Gerald were both killed in a train crash the next day. Understandably, I was left in shock and grieving.’

‘Goodness…’ Chris said in disbelief, ‘I can’t believe it. At least Kevin’s still alive though, isn’t he?’

‘I’m afraid not’, Sotheby said as he shook his head, ‘He drowned in the most tragic of circumstances.’

‘What??’ Chris asked, knowing what this probably meant, ‘You mean he…’

Sotheby nodded in response.

‘No…’ Chris said, ‘This cannot be…’

‘I couldn’t believe it either when I heard about it from Janice last November’, Sotheby said sadly, ‘However, he had been severely depressed ever since he somehow heard about you being in jail.’

‘So, it’s just me, you and Janice now then?’ Chris asked.

‘Yes’, Sotheby replied, ‘Oh, and there’s also Mother and Father back home.’

‘I see’, Chris said disappointedly, ‘It’s sad to think that over half your family is gone, and at such young ages too.’

‘Yeah’, Sotheby said, ‘I know how you feel. Anyway, we need to eat all of this before it spoils.’

‘I agree’, Chris said.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This and the next chapter are reasonably long.
> 
> Rated M - E for slight sexual content near the end - nothing too graphic though.

The following evening at 6:00, Chris told Sotheby that he was going out for a while.

‘Ok’, Sotheby said in response, ‘Please be careful out there.’

‘See you later, ‘Sotheby’, Chris said before walking out and locking the front door.

It wasn’t long until he came across a long stairwell concealed by darkness down an alley between two buildings.

 _‘I wonder where this leads to?’_ he thought as he descended into the blackness.

Suddenly, a man taps him on the shoulder, nearly causing him to fall down the stairs.

‘Dear heavens’, he said, ‘You gave me a heck of a fright.’

‘Sorry about that’, the other man said, ‘Anyway, my name is Oswald.’

‘In that case’, Chris said when he realised something familiar about him – _‘Perhaps we have something in common?’_ – ‘I’m Christopher, but you can just call me Chris.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Chris’, Oswald said as they shook hands, ‘Blimey, your name and voice sound familiar somehow, I just don’t know how.’

Yes’, Chris said, ‘I seem to be familiar to a lot of folks, although they just can’t put a finger on why. Anyway, where does this stairway lead to?’

‘Come with me and I’ll show you’, Oswald said as they continued descending.

‘Ok’, Chris said,

Once they were at the bottom of the stairs, Oswald knocked on the big steel door in front of them, causing a quiet clanging sound.

‘Hello?’a voice said when the door opened, ‘Oh, Oswald, you’re back.’

‘Yes, Stephen’, Oswald said, ‘And I’ve bought a friend with me.’

‘’Hello, Stephen’, Chris said upon entering through the door before it shut again, ‘I’m Chris.’

Stephen could not believe what he had just heard or who he was seeing.

‘I…I can’t believe it!’ he said in a shocked voice, ‘Please, come on in; everyone ought to know that you’re here.’

‘Um…ok’, Chris said as he and Oswald followed him into the main part of the room.

‘Everyone!’ Stephen said in a raised voice that caused people to stop what they were doing and pay attention, ‘I have some amazing news; C-dub has finally returned to be among us!’

‘HOORAH!!’ everyone in the club shouted.

‘Hey, handsome’, a man said upon approaching Chris, ‘Want to dance?’

‘Hm…sure, why not?’ Chris said before they left the bar for the dance floor.

Meanwhile, a group of three friends were talking on the other side of the room.

‘Nice one, John’, one of them, James, laughed in response to a joke, ‘You sure are funny when you want to be.’

‘I agree’, their friend, Darren, said before noticing that James’ attention was held elsewhere, as was John’s, ‘Guys?’

‘Whoa!’ a wide-eyed James said, ‘He’s so handsome!’

‘Who is?’ Darren asked.

‘It’s _that_ guy with the moustache’, James replied while looking in Chris’ direction.

‘Oh, you mean Chris Webster?’ Darren said, ‘Sure, he’s a looker alright, but…’

‘I just _wish_ that I could dance with him…’ James said dreamily.

‘Well, good luck with that becoming reality any time soon’, Darren said.

‘What?’ James asked with a shocked voice.

‘Word has it that C-dub is somewhat of a charmer’, Darren said, ‘In other words, he’ll seduce you with his smooth talk and flattering ways, until you can no longer resist. And then, as quick as a flash, he’s gone, ready to start the cycle again.’

‘Darren’s right’, John said, ‘I was an unsuspecting victim last week at this very establishment; I was so charged up by the end of the night that I had no choice but to…ahem… _use my hands_ , if you know what I mean…’

‘I see’, James said, ‘He’s that good, eh? Well, I guess I’ll have to find out myself.’

Darren and John looked at each other blankly for a few seconds.

‘Did I also mention that he has had a few lovers in the past?’ Darren asked.

‘Well, with looks like _that_ , I wouldn’t doubt it if I wanted to’, James said.

‘It just so happens that I had an “encounter” with one of them recently’, John said, ‘He said that if you’re lucky, he’ll take you to spend the night at his flat on the corner, where you’ll be treated to, in his words, “the greatest, most pleasurable experience of your young life.’

‘Blimey’, James said, ‘I’m getting all hot and bothered just thinking about it.’

‘Exactly’, John said, ‘That was pretty much my intention in the first place.’

‘Anyway’, James said, ‘Time for a drink, I think.’

John and Darren rolled their eyes in response.

‘What?’ John asked.

‘It was just that phrase’, John said, ‘The fifth and seventh words rhyme.’

‘Oh…’ James said, ‘I see.’

**10:10 p.m.….**

‘Hey there’, a man said to James in front of the bar, ‘You look like you could do with a friend.’

‘Thanks, but I…’ James began before he noticed who he was talking to, ‘ _Whoa_ …it’s you…’

‘Oh, my, goodness’, John and Darren said simultaneously as their jaws dropped, ‘It’s really _him_.’

‘P-pleased to m-meet y-you-u, um…uh…C-dub. I’m J-James.’

‘Nice too meet you too, James’, Chris said, ‘Sounds like you already know my nickname.’

‘Uh…yes,’, James, John and Darren said collectively, ‘We all do.’

‘I suppose that goes for everyone else here tonight’, John said.

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘In fact, it’s not just at this place I’m well-known; I’ve frequented places like this around the country.’

The trio of friends were left flabbergasted upon hearing this.

‘So, let me get this straight’, James said, ‘ _You’re_ known throughout the community then?’

‘Precisely’, Chris said, ‘Picked up a few blokes along the way too.’

‘Yes’, James said, ‘We’ve all heard about your “nights in” with your lovers.’

‘Speaking of travelling around’, John said, ‘I’m assuming you know what happened last month in Blackpool, am I right?’

‘Yes’, Chris said disappointedly, ‘In fact, I and this other man had left a few minutes before the raid took place; we couldn’t believe our luck as we watched the chaos unfold from a safe distance.’

‘I know how you feel’, James said, ‘It’s a matter of luck whether you’re caught up in one or not.’

‘Exactly’, Chris said, ‘And speaking of that, would you believe that I _was_ unlucky enough a few years ago?’

‘No way’, James said, ‘You were taken in?’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘It happened in 1903, at a place similar to this one in York; I was there with my then-boyfriend, well, _late_ boyfriend, when the police came and took us away. Anyway, a few days later, we were found guilty and sentenced to two years in jail.’

‘Goodness me!’ James said in a shocked tone, ‘Two years…how on earth did you make it through?’

‘It wasn’t easy’, Chris said, ‘I had to work long hours every day, no matter the weather; the food wasn’t that flash either.’

‘I can imagine’, James said.

‘Fortunately, I became acquainted with a tough man on my second day on the inside’, Chris said, ‘He kept all the creeps and homophobes off my back for a small weekly fee.’

Just hearing this made James’ blood boil with fury.

‘I just wish we could live without the fear of persecution; that we could go about our business in the daylight like everyone else’, he said.

‘Me too’, Chris said disappointedly, ‘Perhaps in a future world, things will have changed for the better; who knows?’

‘Yeah’, James sighed, ‘Sadly though, I don’t think we’ll live to see it.’

‘Me neither’, Chris said before thinking, _‘But we will see it from Heaven.’_

‘Look, James’, Chris said, ‘Since it’s so late, I’ll let you stay the night with me. How does that sound?’

James’ eyes widened upon realising what this meant.

‘Oh, goodness!’ he said excitedly, ‘Yes please!’

‘Ok, then’, Chris said, ‘It’s a deal.’

‘Well’, Chris said as he unlocked the front door, ‘Home at last.’

‘It’s amazing’, James whispered as the door was locked again, ‘So, is it just you here?’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘Although my older brother is currently visiting before he makes his way home tomorrow.’

‘What does he do for a living?’ James whispered.

‘He works at a fancy hotel up north as a cleaner’, Chris whispered, ‘Anyway, it’s time to go to bed.’

‘But what about me?’ James whispered.

‘Come with me’, Chris whispered, ‘I have a surprise for you.’

‘Ok’, James whispered before they quietly ascended the stairs and walked down the hall to the second bedroom.

‘Whoa’, James whispered when Chris opened the door, ‘There’s a double bed?’

‘Yes’, Chris whispered, ‘The landlord said that it was left here by the previous owners when they sold the place and moved overseas.’

‘Well then’, James whispered when he closed the door, ‘That’s the issue of me not having a place to sleep sorted.’

‘You know what?’ Chris whispered, ‘I was thinking the same thing.’

‘What?’ James whispered.

‘Don’t you get it?’ Chris whispered, ‘I had been planning to bed you all night.’

‘I see’, James whispered, ‘Well, congratulations, C-dub, you’ve succeeded.’

‘Please, James’, Chris whispered as he began getting undressed, ‘Just call me Chris when we’re not in a bar.’

‘Ok’, James whispered as he did the same.

‘WOW!’ James whispered a few seconds later while standing at the edge of the bed, ‘ _That_ thing is **huge**!’

‘Thanks’, Chris whispered as they both sat down and pulled the blanket and sheet up, ‘To be honest, you aren’t the first man to say that.’

‘No’, James whispered before thinking, _‘I bet I’m not either…’_

‘Anyway’, Chris whispered, ‘Could you please pass me the jar on the bedside table?’

‘Sure’, James whispered as he gave it to him, ‘What’s in it?’

‘Vaseline’, Chris said, ‘Thought we might need it.’

James’ eyes widened in excitement upon hearing this.

‘On second thought’, Chris whispered upon noticing his eyes, ‘I believe we _will_ need it.’

‘You said it’, James whispered before they began kissing.

**Half an hour later…**

Down the hall, Sotheby woke up to the faint sound of what sounded like bedsprings squeaking on the other side of the wall.

 _‘What’s going on down there?’_ he thought as he got out of bed, opened the door and made his way down the hall to the other door before knocking lightly.

‘What was that?’ Chris whispered while freezing in place.

‘What?’ James whispered, ‘Is something the matter?’

‘I think we need to keep quiet for a few minutes to make sure we’re safe’, Chris whispered.

Unfortunately, Sotheby had misinterpreted the muffled voices on the other side of the door and decided to come in and light the lantern on the desk.

‘Christopher, I…’ he began before witnessing what he had walked in on.

‘AAAHHH!’ everyone screamed, going red-faced with embarrassment.

‘Good heavens!’ Sotheby said as he diverted his eyes, ‘I didn’t know…that…that you had someone here!’

‘Look, I’m sorry’, Chris said as he pulled out, ‘I was going to tell you when we came in, but you were already asleep.’

‘No, no’, Sotheby said, ‘You’re a grown man; you can bring people up here if you want to. It’s just that, would you be so kind as to keep the noise down?’

‘Ok’, Chris said, ‘Will do in the future.’

‘Thank you’, Sotheby said before extinguishing the lantern and closing the door.

‘Phew! Glad that’s over, James’, Chris said before noticing he was lying down, shaking and with his face in his hands, ‘James?’

‘It…it’s all over…’ James said nervously.

‘What do you mean?’ Chris asked.

‘He caught us in the act, Chris!’ James said while sweating profusely, ‘Did you see the look of utter horror on his face? He’s probably heading to the police station to report us right now!’

‘Yes’, Chris began before being cut off, ‘But…’

‘They’re going to haul us away, I’m sure of it!’ James said, ‘We’ll be thrown into a jail cell and forgotten about!’

‘Sheesh, calm down’, Chris said, ‘My brother, the man who was just here, would _never_ do that.’

‘Huh?’ James’ asked with a look of utter confusion, ‘Are you mad?’

‘Look, James’, Chris said, ‘Sotheby isn’t bothered by my “tendencies” at all; he’s a very forward-thinking man. Trust me, we’re perfectly safe here.’

‘But…’ James said, ‘The way he looked at – or didn’t look at – us…’

‘I can assure you, the only thing he was concerned about was me keeping the noise down’, Chris said.


	13. Chapter 13

_June 25_

_11:45 a.m._

‘Well’, Sotheby said to Chris as the car came to a stop at the side of the road, ‘Ready to meet Mother and Father?’

‘Uh…sure, I suppose’, Chris said upon closing the door.

‘Ok’, Sotheby said after locking the car, ‘Let’s go then.’

However, while walking up the long pathway to the house, Chris’ mind became filled with a plethora of ideas based on some not-so-good memories of growing up.

 _‘Your parents will **never** accept you’_, he thought, _‘They’ve hated you ever since thy discovered who you really are…’_

_‘Shut up, mind!’_

_‘But it’s true! Oh, and one more thing…they_ always _will!’_

‘Didn’t I tell you to keep quiet!?’ Chris unintentionally said out loud.

‘What was that?’ Sotheby asked.

‘Oh’, Chris replied, ‘Sorry, it was nothing; I was just thinking to myself.’

‘I see’, Sotheby said as they climbed the steps onto the veranda and stopped outside the front door, ‘Anyway, we’re here.’

‘Goodness’, Chris said as he looked around, ‘This brings back so many memories! Remember that time you slipped in the very spot you’re standing in right now that winter?

‘Yes’, Sotheby said, ‘Boy, do I remember that well - I collected both you and Esmerelda as I slid across the veranda before crashing into a snow drift on the corner; you must have been only around 5 or 6 at the time, while I was 12 or 13.’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘I distinctly recall that you still had a high-pitched voice back then.’

‘Those were the times’, Sotheby said, ‘We sure had a lot of fun, didn’t we?’

‘Yes’, Chris said, Anyway, we better go in.’

‘I agree’, Sotheby said before knocking on the door.

‘Oh, Sotheby’, Joanne said upon opening the door, ‘Please, come in.’

‘Pleased to meet you again, Mother’, Sotheby said as he walked inside.

‘So’, Joanne said when she sat down in a chair in the Day Room, ‘What brings you here?’

‘Oh, you know, holiday pay’, Sotheby said, ‘The job’s been going well, as usual.’

‘I see’, Joanne said, ‘Anyway, congratulations on the engagement!’

‘Ah, yes’, Sotheby said, ‘Her name is Imelda Stevenson; I’ll bring her here to meet you and Father next time I visit.’

‘How lovely’, Joanne said, ‘I shall look forward to meeting my future sister-in-law.’

‘You never told me you were engaged’, Chris said upon entering the room, shocking Joanne in the process.

‘Oh, Christopher…’ she said with the slightest hint of disappointment in her voice, ‘Please…take a seat.’

‘Thank you, Mother’, Chris said as he sat down.

‘By the way’, Sotheby said, ‘I’ve heard that Janice has had her baby.’

‘Yes’, Joanne said, ‘He’s such a lovely little boy; got his mother’s eyes and his father’s hair and ears.’

‘I see’, Sotheby said, ‘Have they named him yet?’

‘I don’t believe they have’, Joanne said, ‘However, I could be wrong; he was born over a week ago, after all.’

It was then that Toby walked in from the hall to join them.

‘Nice to see you again, Sotheby’, he said.

‘You too, Father’, Sotheby said.

However, his expression quickly turned into one of anger and hate when he turned to face Chris.

‘Hello again, Father’, Chris said, ‘It’s been a long time since I was last here, hasn’t it?’

‘Yes’, Toby said before thinking, _‘Too bad you’ve returned; it was much better without you around.’_

‘Anyway’, Joanne said as she stood up, ‘Lunch is almost ready.’

‘Ok’, Sotheby and Chris said while they and Toby walked down the hall to the dining room, ‘What are we having?’

‘I wanted to have something special today since you’re visiting, so I decided on roast lamb and vegetables; it should be coming up at any time now.’

‘Sounds delicious’, Sotheby said as everyone took their place at the table, ‘I’m glad I had nothing to eat on my way down here.’

**Forty-five minutes later…**

‘That was incredible’, Sotheby said after clearing the last pea off his plate, ‘My compliments to the team down in the kitchen.’

‘I’m glad you liked it, Sotheby’, Joanne said as the table was cleared by the servants, ‘Roast lamb is my favourite as well.’

However, after they were left alone in the room, Toby finally snapped and spoke his mind about Chris visiting.

‘ **Why** is _he_ here??’ he asked, ‘ _Who_ let him in??’

‘Well’, Sotheby said, ‘ _Christopher_ wanted to come with me to visit you today, so I picked him up on my way down south.’

‘Toby…’ Joanne began before being cut off, ‘I don’t think that…’

‘He has **no** right to be here in our home!!’ Toby shouted as he banged his fist on the tabletop, ‘I am **not** going to tolerate our peaceful abode being tainted by a _sin_ so vile it shall not be mentioned within these walls!!’

Sotheby was utterly appalled by this comment.

‘Enough!’ he said, ‘I’ve had it with your bigoted ways! Christopher has done nothing wrong in being here, plus he has _never_ hurt anyone!’ Why don’t you just leave him alone??’

‘Sotheby…’ Toby said upon standing up, ‘You seem to misunderstand that we threw him out for a reason all those years ago; that being that **he** is messed up in the _foulest, most disgusting_ way imaginable!!’

‘Well, I _clearly_ don’t see _or_ feel that’, Sotheby said, ‘He has _always_ appreciated me whenever I come to visit; you just need to accept him for who he is!’

‘He’ll go to Hell!’ Toby shouted.

‘See? That’s where you’re wrong’, Sotheby said, ‘A _loving_ God wouldn’t do that to any of his creatures.’

‘ _Clearly_ you have forgotten the Bible verses related to his…crime, plus the eternal punishment that awaits people like him!’ Toby said, ‘I suggest you go and refresh your memory.’

Upon hearing this, Sotheby decided to tell his father about the major turning point in his life.

‘You know what?’ he said, ‘I’ve renounced my faith as of a couple of years ago.’

‘WHAT!?’ Joanne and Toby said in shock, ‘Is this true?’

‘Yes’, Sotheby said, ‘I just don’t see how God could have created and be in charge of the universe, _especially_ the one that **you** seem to believe in.’

‘Joanne and Toby looked at each other blankly for a few seconds before Toby spoke again.

‘Fine’, Toby said, ‘You go off into the world and live what you want to live; commit all the sin your heart desires, I don’t care. Just be mindful that you’ll never be accepted into Heaven when you die.’

‘Anyway’, Joanne said when she stood up, ‘We best be off. Follow us to the Day Room if you want to talk.’

‘Ok’, Sotheby said before thinking, _‘No thanks.’_

After the door had closed and they were alone, Sotheby hugged a teary-eyed, sobbing Chris.

‘It’s ok’, he said, ‘They’re gone now.’

‘They’re r-right, S-Sotheby’, Chris sobbed, ‘I…I…I’M A FAILURE!!’

‘No, you’re not’, Sotheby said, ‘You’re just different from everyone else, that’s all.’

‘I’m nothing but a **freak** who d-deserves nothing but d-death!’ Chris sobbed.

‘Look her, Christopher’, Sotheby said, ‘No-one deserves death, _no-one.’_

‘You mean it?’ Chris sniffed.

‘Yes, I’m sure’, Sotheby said, ‘Sure as the day is separated from night.’

‘Thanks, Sotheby’, Chris said.

‘Anyway’, Sotheby said, ‘How’s about we leave and get a small treat on the way home? How does that sound?’

‘Sure’, Chris said, ‘Count me in.’


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: Mild depiction of attempted suicide

_March 28,_

_1918_

‘What???’ Chris said as he stared at the letter in horror and disbelief, ‘My brother’s **_dead_**??’

‘Unfortunately, yes’, Kenneth said from the other side of the table, ‘He was blown up by an enemy mortar in the battle of the Somme.’

Upon hearing this, Chris dropped the letter onto the table and put his face in his hands.

‘Why???’ he sobbed, ‘Just WHY!??’’

‘I’m sorry, Chris’, Kenneth said while patting him on the back, ‘If there’s anything to do to help you feel better…’

‘It’s no use…’ Chris sobbed when he looked up at him, ‘Everyone hates me; society, my sister, my parents, the police, even God! They all h-hate me!!’

‘I love you’, Kenneth said before being cut off.

‘I’d be better off dead!’ Chris sobbed, ‘Let them remember me as a man whose whole family is basically gone; a man WITHOUT PURPOSE!!’

‘No, you wouldn’t’, Kenneth said as he kissed him, ‘Let’s go up to bed, shall we?’

However, Chris had other ideas on how to spend the afternoon, and it wasn’t pretty.

‘GET OUT!!’ he screamed from the top of his lungs, ‘Can’t you just let this worthless piece of shit MOURN IN PEACE!!?’

‘Chris, don’t say that’, Kenneth said, ‘You know it’s not true.’

‘I don’t fucking care!!!’ Chris shouted, ‘Especially if it came from **_your_** bloody yap!!’

Kenneth was taken back by this, obviously hurt by the barrage of words that had just invaded his ear canals and were now swirling around in his head.

‘Well…’ he said while desperately trying to hold back tears, ‘I-if that’s the way you f-feel…then I’m leaving!’

‘Be gone, bellend!’ Chris shouted, ‘I don’t want to see your face around here anymore!!’

‘Farewell, Chris’, Kenneth said as he stormed through the front door and slammed it shut, knocking a picture off the wall in the process.

 _‘Go fuck yourself!!!’_ Chris thought before trudging up the stairs and into his bedroom at the far end of the hall, where he fell face first onto the bed and began crying.

‘WHY ME!!!?’ he screamed into the pillow, ‘I’m just a lonely fucking nobody!!! A **cursed** man who was afflicted with a vile disease; a _mortal sin_!! I’m eternally damned, I tell you! DAMNED!!!’

At midday the following day, Kenneth was in the park sitting on a bench when he heard a woman screaming from down at the riverbank.

 _What the??’_ he thought as he stood up and rushed as fast as he could to the scene before asking in a panic, ‘What’s wrong, mam?’

‘It was horrible!’ the woman, Emily, sobbed, ‘I saw…a man…in the river…he was m-motionless!’

This caused Kenneth to instantly have a flashback of what happened between him and Chris during the last 24 hours.

‘Good heavens!’ he said in even more of a panic than before, ‘Where exactly did you find him?’

‘Come with me and I’ll show you’, Emily said before they ran along the riverbank to a large bridge.

‘There!’ she said while pointing to a figure face-down and floating in the water.

However, there was something about this figure that caused Kenneth to rip his shoes off and wade out into the middle of the river.

‘Dear me’, he said in a panic, ‘Christopher!!’

‘Good heavens!’ Emily said when Kenneth laid Chris out on the grass, ‘Is he alright?’

‘I don’t know’, Kenneth said, ‘Hopefully he was pulled out in time.’

‘Should I call for help?’ Emily said, ‘Dr. Fred’s clinic is within walking distance from here.’

‘Yes’, Kenneth said, ‘That would be good. Just hurry!’

‘Ok’, Emily said before running off.

‘Come on, Chris…’ Kenneth said a few seconds later, ‘Please…wake up!’

‘Right’, Dr. Fred said upon arriving at the scene with Emily and navigating through the small crowd that had now gathered, ‘What’s going on here?’

‘Ah, Dr. Fred’, Kenneth said, ‘Thank goodness you’re here; I found this man face-down in the river.’

‘Well’, Emily said, ‘It was me who discovered him, but still…’

‘I see’, Dr. Fred said when he knelt down over Chris’ seemingly lifeless body, ‘How long was he in the water for?’

‘We don’t know’, Kenneth said, ‘However, he has not woken up since then.'

‘Hasn’t woken up, you say?’ Dr. Fred said, ‘Hm…I think he should be taken to hospital at least for tonight for observation, since he was in the water for so long. Besides, he needs a change out of those soaked clothes.’

‘Ok’, Emily said ‘Now, how do we call an ambulance…’

As if on cue, an ambulance pulled up at the side of the road just as she had said this.

Ok’, everyone’, the medics said as they lifted Chris onto a stretcher, ‘We’ll take it from here.’

‘Thanks’, Kenneth said, ‘Please take good care of him.’

‘Don’t you worry about that, sir’, one of the medics said, ‘He’ll be well looked after.’

‘Once again, thank you!’ Kenneth said as the ambulance disappeared down the road.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know the proper names of any of the counties since I'm not from England - so please excuse any errors.
> 
> That said, I've taken an educated guess based on where the show and movie are set.

‘Thank you, Mr. Fuller’, Kenneth said to a middle-aged man behind a desk on the second floor of the local hospital before disappearing down the corridor to the left.

_‘Hm…’_ , he thought as he rushed down the corridor, passing numerous rooms and doors on the way, _‘Let me see…22, 23, and…’_

 _‘AH!’_ he thought upon reaching the far end, _‘24.’_

After double-checking the number beside the door-frame to make sure that this was the correct room, he slowly opened the door and made his way in, where a doctor was on his way out’ having just finished whatever task he’d been assigned.

‘Ah’, he said, ‘You must be Kenneth, Christopher’s friend.’

‘Uh…yes’, Kenneth said, ‘Yes, I am.’

‘Well, in that case’, the doctor said, ‘You’ll be pleased to know that he is doing well after the events of earlier today; he’s incredibly fortunate to be alive. If you hadn’t been there to rescue him, things may well have turned out differently…’

‘I know’, Kenneth said while mentally processing what could have happened otherwise, ‘Goodness knows what would have happened if I wasn’t there…’

‘Anyway, though’, the doctor said before exiting and shutting the door, ‘I’ll leave you to it.’

‘Goodbye and thank you’, Kenneth said before moving a chair beside the bed where Chris lay, eyes closed but breathing; Kenneth could see that his clothes had been changed as well, much to his relief.

‘Please…Chris-’, he whispered as a lone tear streaked down one side of his face, ‘Just, please…wake up! I beg of you!’

After a few minutes of waiting with no success, he fell asleep in the chair.

**5:25 p.m.…**

Suddenly, Kenneth was woken up by a rustling noise.

‘Who’s there?’ he asked as his eyes sprang open, only to see that Chris was awake at last.

‘Christopher!’ he exclaimed, nearly falling out of the chair in shock, ‘You’re awake!’

‘You…’ Chris said weakly, ‘Kenneth…’

‘Yes’, Kenneth said while checking to make sure the door was still closed, ‘I’m right here for you, dear.’

‘I love you’, Chris said before they kissed passionately, ‘Thanks for rescuing me.’

‘No problem, my love’, Kenneth said before continuing the kiss, only to stop immediately and pull back just as the door opened.

‘Dinner time’, the doctor said as he bought something into the room and placed it on a table as Chris stood up.

‘Thank you, Doc’, he said while making his way over to the chair in the corner as the door closed, leaving him and Kenneth alone once again.

‘So’, Kenneth said, ‘I hear you may be able to return home as early as tomorrow morning.’

‘Thank heavens for that’, Chris said, ‘This place is depressing; I am of the belief that the person next door died of a heart attack or something just before you came in.’

‘How come?’ Kenneth asked.

‘I heard voices in there as I was being settled in, in addition to furniture being moved around so they could, I assume, remove the body’, Chris replied.

‘Now that you mention it’, Kenneth said, ‘I _did_ see what looked like a body being taken away while I was at the front desk.’

It was then that Chris noticed something about his clothing.

‘Hey’, he said, ‘I don’t remember being in these clothes.’

‘That’s because you were changed when you came in’, Kenneth said, ‘To put it another way, they didn’t want you looking like a soaked rat.’

Chris laughed at the comparison.

‘Well then’, he said, ‘I thank them for doing that; that _would_ have been a sight to behold.’

‘Not to mention being frozen half to death by now’, Kenneth said.

‘And that too’, Chris said.

At approximately 10:37 the next morning, Chris got the shock of his life.

‘Blimey’, he said excitedly as he pulled the curtains over his bedroom window before opening the door and pulling Kenneth in, ‘This is going to be good!’

‘You said it, dear’, Kenneth said as he began undressing as Chris did the same, ‘I can’t believe we're actually doing this; I’m going to rock your socks off!’

‘But I’m not wearing socks’, Chris said, ‘Well, I _was_ up to a few seconds ago, put it that way.’

‘Well then’, Kenneth said, ‘I’ll _still_ be blowing your mind with what I have in store for you.’

‘Cheeky…’ Chris said while blushing as he thought about the other possible interpretation of what had just been mentioned, ‘I shall be looking forward to it.’

‘Yes’, Kenneth said, ‘I _most certainly_ will.’

‘Anyway’, Chris said as he lay on the bed, ‘Shall we begin?’

‘Yes, my love’, Kenneth said, ‘I just need to use the bathroom first.’

‘Ok’, Chris said before he left the room.

However, after closing the bathroom door, Kenneth opened one of the draws beside the basin and pulled out a black suit.

 _‘Now I’ve got you!’_ he thought while getting dressed, _‘Little did you know that I’m an undercover policeman, Mr. Webster!’_

Meanwhile, Chris was completely unaware of what was going on as the door opened.

‘Yoo-hoo?’ he asked seductively, ‘Is that you, dear??’

‘Yes, it is me, _dear_ ’, Kenneth said before closing the door and showing him the badge on his helmet, ‘And you’re under arrest!’

However, Chris didn’t believe this was a real threat – _‘Just play along’_ , he thought.

‘I see’, he said, ‘Is _this_ what you meant as a surprise?’

However, Kenneth wasn’t going to tolerate any nonsense.

‘Look, I’m going to tell you two things’, he said, ‘First, it _is_ a surprise, and second, GET UP AND DRESSED!!’

Chris looked at him dumbfounded before realising what was going on.

 _‘Oh…shit!!’_ he though as he was putting his clothes on, _‘I’m screwed!!’_

‘What is the meaning of this?’ Chris asked as he was being led out the door and down the stairs a few seconds later.

‘Don’t you get it?’ Kenneth replied, ‘I’m a member of the Yorkshire County Police, and you’re under arrest for attempting to seduce a police officer!’

Immediately after saying this, Chris felt a sense of anger and betrayal.

‘But…that kiss we shared yesterday in the hospital and how you said you loved me then and many times before…’ he said, ‘I thought we had something!’

‘Well, sorry, lavender, but you were wrong!’ Kenneth said, ‘I only _pretended_ to like you to lull you into a false sense of security. Anyway, we’re going downtown right now!’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The scene with the kiss at the hospital being interrupted references the hospital scene from The Greatest Showman and the final kiss scene from the Downton Abbey movie.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: This chapter has a strong M to E rating for a somewhat graphic depiction of prison rape at the end.

_‘Oh great…’_ Chris thought as he was dragged into the courthouse the next day, faces glaring at him accusingly from the other side of the room, _‘Not this shit again!’_

‘…would Mr. Hopkinson please come forward?’ the judge asked from behind him half an hour later.

‘Yes, Your Honour’, a tall, brown-haired and handsome – _devilishly_ handsome – man took his place behind the podium, making Chris nervous as he desperately tried to hide the rose-coloured tinge growing on his face.

‘I hereby swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth’, he said before answering a set of questions asked by the judge.

As the hours passed, numerous people came forward and gave their statements, resulting in gasping and muttering from the jury.

‘Silence!’ the judge said upon banging the gavel down, ‘Order in the Court! Now, could the final complainant please come forward?’

It was then a middle-aged man walked up to and stood behind the podium before the cycle of oath-taking and question-asking repeated once again.

However, this man wasn’t just any member of the public, as Chris was shocked to discover upon looking at him.

 _‘Kenneth!’_ he thought.

‘Can you please state your full name, age and occupation?’ the judge asked.

‘Kenneth Edgars, age 39, officer for the Yorkshire County Police.’

‘Very well’, the judge said, ‘Now, where were you on the day of March 30?’

‘I was in the hospital in York until 10:00 a.m. that morning, having stayed overnight with the accused after he had attempted to drown himself the previous day.’

‘I see’, the judge said, ‘Did he or did he not do anything to you?’

‘Not that morning, Your Honour’, Kenneth said, ‘However, at around 5:30-6:00 the previous evening he…’

 _‘Oh boy’_ , Chris thought nervously, knowing what he was going to say, _‘This is it.’_

‘…he **kissed** me on the lips!’ Kenneth said blatantly as the jury gasped in shock and disgust.

****

‘Ok’, the judge said, ‘Did anything of significance happen after 10:00 a.m. on March 30?’

‘After he was discharged, I took him home to his flat across the road from the park where I had been the previous day when I found him in the river’, Kenneth said, ‘However, after having lunch in the kitchen at approximately mid-day, he took me upstairs to his bedroom, where he closed the curtains and door and attempted to seduce me by undressing; I said I needed to use the bathroom for a minute, to which he agreed to wait on the bed until I returned. When I _did_ finally re-enter the room, he said, and I quote, “Yoo-hoo, is that you, dear?” in a seductive manner, to which I replied, “Yes, it is me, _dear_. And you’re under arrest!”’

Suddenly, Chris could feel the hairs on his neck and arms standing on end as the jury once again glared accusingly and angrily at him.

‘I told him to get up and dressed immediately, after which I led him down the stairs and out of the house’, Kenneth said.

‘I see’, the judge said, ‘Thank you for your statement.’

‘Thank you, Your Honour’, Kenneth said before returning to his seat.

‘Right’, the judge said before looking accusingly at Chris a few long minutes later, ‘Christopher Fitzgerald Webster, you have been found guilty on all charges laid against you and are hereby sentenced to two years hard labour!’

Upon hearing this, Chris’ heart sank as he was led out of the room by two policemen while the jury collectively breathed a sigh of relief at the decision.

_‘Here I am again’_ , Chris thought upon being led into a cell that was already housing three other inmates, _‘Just like 1903 all over again.’_

‘Maybe this time you will **_turn_** from your life of crime!’ one of the prison guards said before leaving and slamming the door.

‘Hey’, one of his new cellmates said with an evil grin on his face a while after the guards had left, ‘Who’s the fresh bit o’ meat?’

‘Wh-what do you g-guys want??’ Chris asked nervously as he backed into one of the bunks.

‘What’s yer name?’ one of the others, Marcus, asked.

‘It’s Ch-Christopher’, Chris replied nervously.

‘We meant your **full** name, twit!!’ Marcus said as he violently shoved Chris into a wall, ‘Now, what is your surname!??’

‘W-Webster, s-sir’, Chris replied.

The three other men grinned with delight upon hearing this.

‘MWAHAHA!!’ they laughed evilly, ‘We’re going to have lots of fun initiating you, lavender!’

‘Yes’, Marcus said when he pinned Chris on the yet unoccupied bunk, ‘Tell me, Webster; do you know how your sort are treated in places like this?’

‘I-I have a f-fair idea…’ Chris said nervously, N-nearly happened to m-me once, you know.’

‘Well then’, Marcus said, ‘Let us give you a refresher!’

A few seconds later, Chris found himself standing against the wall again, albeit with nothing on and his back turned to Marcus and the others.

‘Ok, Gerald’, Marcus said, ‘He’s all yours.’

‘Sure, boss’, Gerald said before walking up to Chris and getting into position.

Suddenly, Chris howled in pain as something was rammed inside him.

‘SHUT UP, SISSY!!’ Marcus shouted as he watched the scene unfold before him, ‘Do you **_want_** the guards to come in and _see_ this!?’

‘N-no’, Chris sobbed while shaking his head while a lone tear ran down his face.

He came a few agonising and humiliating minutes later, spilling all over the wall and floor in front of him as Gerald pulled out.

‘And _that’s_ how it’s done!’ Marcus said as he handed him a cloth, Now get dressed and clean _that_ slop up before the guards see it!’

‘Y-yes, sir’, Chris said before getting down on his hands and knees.


	17. Chapter 17

The abuse and harassment continued throughout the day until bedtime – starting during the lunch hour when Chris was sitting at one of the tables in the cafeteria, when someone hurled a glass of orange juice from the table behind him.

‘Oi!!’ a loud, booming voice shouted, ‘Hey, Nancy, watch out!!’

‘Wha...’ Chris began as he turned around, only to be sprayed with the orange-yellow liquid as the glass bounced off the edge of the table and landed on the floor with a sharp crunching sound.

‘Look what you’ve done to my clothes and hair!!’ Chris said as he stood up and approached the culprit, ‘Now I’ll be uncomfortable and sticky all afternoon, thanks to **you**!!’

Suddenly, the other man – a tall, burly-looking guy – shoved him back into the table before lifting and pinning him onto the tabletop.

‘I’d watch it if I were you, lavender’, the man, Daniel, said coldly, ‘Because my fists will have a fun time beating you black and blue otherwise!!’

‘Get off me!’ Chris shouted before biting his arm, causing him to let go and yell in pain.

‘Oh, it’s on…’ Daniel began before noticing Chris had escaped to the other side of the room.

‘Where are you, little runt!?’ he asked before storming towards the rest of the crowd.

Meanwhile, Chris had been tripped by another inmate sticking his leg out before yanking him up by the shirt and dragging him towards Daniel.

‘Found the piece of shit’, he said upon shoving him into his arms, ‘He’s all yours now.’

‘Thanks’, Daniel said before glaring at Chris evilly.

‘So…’ he sneered, ‘You thought you could escape old Daniel, eh??’

Chris looked at him with a cheesy grin on his face before swallowing nervously.

‘You’re not speakin’, eh??’ Daniel said as he moved his arm back, hand clenched into a rock-solid fist, ‘Well then, let me give you somethin’ to talk about!!!’

Almost immediately, Chris dodged the punch by ducking, resulting in Daniel’s fist striking a half-filled soup bowl, sending its contents flying in his face.

‘Come here, you ravin’ wanker!!!’ he growled before violently slamming Chris to the floor and pinning him down with the help of his cellmate and brother, Ian, while Daniel held a knife mere inches above his throat!

‘Now, listen here, Chris!!’ he threatened as the latter struggled hopelessly, ‘Either you apologise **right now** , or I’ll cut your fucking throat!!!’

‘Er…actually, Daniel, could I make a suggestion regarding that?’ Ian asked.

‘Ok’, Daniel replied, ‘What is it?’

‘Well’, Ian said, ‘Since we want to keep the loser alive, yet cause as much pain as possible, may I suggest cutting somewhere else?’

‘Like where?’ Daniel said before noticing his brother’s smile, ‘Oh…I get it. Nice idea.’

It was then that the knife was lifted away from Chris’ throat.

 _‘Phew!’_ he thought while breathing a sigh of relief, only to look down and see when the knife now was.

‘No…’ he begged, ‘No…you can’t…just please…’

‘ **Don’t** move or the worm gets it!!!’ Daniel threatened when he moved the blade so the point was just barely touching the head.

Suddenly, a group of guards came bursting in through the doors and rushed over.

‘What’s going on here?’ one of them said while another dragged Daniel away and took the knife as the same happened to Ian.

‘I tell you old fucks!!!’ Daniel screamed in protest before being cut off, ‘ **He’s** a fucking qu-’

‘That’ll shut you up!’ the guard said when he bonked him over the head with a wooden object, causing him to pass out momentarily, ‘It’s off to the isolation cells for you **and** your brother!’

As Daniel and Ian were taken away, the other guard approached Chris, who was still lying on the floor.

‘GET UP!!!’ he ordered, causing Chris to stand up immediately.

‘Ugh…’ Chris said, ‘What happened?’

‘ **Look** at the state of yer clothes!!’ the guard barked, ‘Not to mention your hair! You better go and wash off, and quickly!!’

‘Yes, sir’, Chris said.

‘Here’s a towel’, the guard said upon tossing a big, white piece of cloth at him, ‘And there’ll be **no** funny business while you’re on your own either!’

‘Never is’, Chris lied upon realising he’d meant the term _funny business_ as a euphemism pertaining to a certain solo activity, before heading off to undress.

The rest of the inmates were standing and staring blankly in the direction of the doors when the guard noticed them upon turning around.

‘What are you looking at??’ he said, ‘Get back to your work-stations!’

‘Yes, sir!’ they said collectively before splitting up.

Hours later, after dinner had officially come to an end, Chris was helping in the kitchen drying dishes and stacking them on the drying racks when he caught a glimpse of Gerald on the opposite side of the room through a mirror on the wall.

 _‘Take no notice of him; the nasty prick…’_ he thought while drying a plate as he remembered what had happened between them earlier that day, _‘Bloody disgusting, you are, Gerald. Despicable!!!’_

However, Gerald had completely different ideas on what was going to happen next.

 _‘Mwahaha!!’_ he thought with an evil grin on his face, _‘You’re mine tonight, Webster, **all** mine!!!’_

Unfortunately, Chris had noticed the menacing grin through the mirror and swallowed nervously.

 _‘Oh, n-no…’_ he thought while shaking and sweating as he made his way out of the kitchen, _‘This won’t be good…’_

Suddenly, as if on cue, Gerald appeared before him, blocking his path.

‘Where do you think _you’re_ going, sweetie?’ he asked.

‘Beat it, Gerald’, Chris replied, ‘Can’t you see I’m on my way back to the cell? It will be bedtime before you know it.’

‘Bedtime, you say?’ Gerald said, ‘Well then, let me _come_ with you.’

Chris looked at him dumbfoundedly as a small group of other inmates chuckled and whispered amongst themselves - knowing all too well what was going to be occurring during the night - before realising that he’d emphasised the word _come_.

‘Very clever, Gerald’, he said upon rolling his eyes, ‘I thought you had sorted that out before lunch.’

‘Well then’, Gerald said, ‘Do I have news for you.’

He walked up to Chris and whispered something in his ear.

‘That was only a practice run…’ he whispered, causing Chris to swallow nervously, ‘Just checking the _equipment_ is in good order, if you know what I mean…’

‘I see’, Chris said as the others around them laughed, ‘Anyway, it’s getting late; we need to get a move on.’

‘Right behind you’, Gerald said before they left the room, only for the laughter to grow louder at the innuendo.

‘I _bet_ you will be too!’ a man named Edmond said before adding, ‘And all night long as well!’

‘Shut up, Edmond!’ Ivan said from beside the kitchen door, ‘We all know what is going to happen between those two tonight, and they’ll be _plenty_ of time to talk about it tomorrow.’

At around 6:45 the next morning, Chris woke up feeling groggy and sore in a certain area – only to notice fully what had happened as soon as he looked down the bed.

‘AAAHHH!!!’ he shrieked upon seeing that the sheets and blanket were tossed all over the place and covered with a mysterious white substance.

‘You…monster!!’ he said accusingly to Gerald while looking at him coldly, ‘You…sick sex fiend!! How could you do this to me!!?’

‘Me!? It was **you** who started it last night!’ Gerald said, ‘To be honest, I think you did pretty well, you know, from you initiating to the way I…’

‘I was **half-asleep** dreaming!!’ Chris said, ‘And **you** decided to take advantage of that!!’

‘Enough!’ Marcus said, ‘Those sheets and blanket will have to be taken out to the laundry before we head down for breakfast.’


	18. Chapter 18

_April 2 nd_

_1920_

_‘I sure am glad to be out of **that** hellhole…again’, _Chris thought as he got off the bus, _‘It’s good to be back home at last.’_

However, when he turned around, he witnessed a horrific sight.

‘NOOOO!!’ he shouted upon running to the charred, blackened shell on the corner across the road.

‘Who…who could h-have done _this_!??’ he sobbed while sifting through the ashes.

‘I don’t know’, one of the firemen said, ‘It was one hell of a fierce fire though; took a good five hours to extinguish completely.’

‘I…I c-can’t believe it!!’ Chris sobbed, M-my house…my home…my r-refuge…GONE!!’

‘I’m so sorry about your house’, the fireman said, ‘I sure hope the perpetrator will be caught before they have a chance to strike again.’

‘I do too’, Chris sobbed as he dug out a framed photo of his parents from under a wooden beam that had once held the ceiling up.

‘Anyway’, The fireman said, ‘I’d be more than happy to let you stay at my place until you find a new place to live.’

‘Really?’ Chris asked hopefully.

‘Yes’, the fireman nodded, ‘Oh I almost forgot; I never got your name, did I?’

‘Oh yes’, Chris said, ‘The name’s Christopher, but you can just call me Chris.’

‘Ok then, Chris’, the fireman said, ‘In that case, I’m Isaac.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Isaac’, Chris said, ‘So, where are we headed?’

‘We’ll take the bus to the north-west of the city; the house is right at the end of a quiet road surrounded by trees.

‘Sounds good’, Chris said, ‘Let’s go.’

**Forty-five minutes later…**

‘Here we are’, Isaac said as he opened the tall steel gate and passed through with Chris following him, ‘Welcome home, Chris.’

‘Thank you’, Chris said, ‘It looks and sounds so peaceful around here!

However, this peace was quickly shattered when he was ambushed by a large, brown-coloured Labrador.

‘Clarence, sit!’ Isaac ordered, resulting in the animal obediently sitting between them, ‘Chris is our new friend and lodger.’

‘Anyway, though’, Chris said, ‘I don’t mean to sound rude but, what’s for lunch? I’m starving.’

‘Whoa there!’ Isaac said, ‘Let’s get you settled in first, and then we’ll eat.’

‘Sounds fair to me’, Chris said as he followed Isaac up the cobblestone path to the house.

As soon as they entered though the front door, they were enveloped by a delicious smell wafting from the kitchen.

‘What is that delightful smell?’ Chris asked.

‘That’s my wife baking again’, Isaac replied, ‘She always bakes the most delicious treats.’

‘I see’, Chris said, ‘In that case, I’m looking forward to what she’s made for us today.’

‘Me too’, Isaac said, ‘Come on up and see your new room.’

‘Ok’, Chris said before climbing up the stairs.

‘This is fantastic!’ Chris said as he stood in the middle of the spare bedroom and looked around, ‘It’s got all the comforts of home, including a large window overlooking the front lawn!’

‘I’m glad you like it’, Isaac began before he noticed something on Chris’ arm’, Chris? Are you ok?’

‘Ah, yes’, Chris replied while scratching a small cluster of red spots that had mysteriously appeared over the past minute, ‘Anyway, ‘I’ll unpack while you go down and see what your wife has made for us.’

‘Ok’, Isaac said before closing the door, ‘See you downstairs soon.’

‘Ahhhh…’ Isaac said upon opening the kitchen door completely, ‘I thought you’d be baking those today.’

‘Yes’, the woman, Myrtle, said, ‘These brownies are made using a secret family recipe; we loved to eat them as kids.’

‘Not to mention they smell delicious’, Isaac said, ‘I and my new friend, Chris, could smell them as soon as we entered through the front door.’

‘A new friend, you say?’ Myrtle said, ‘Well, I’m sure looking forward to meeting him.’

‘Oh, he’ll be down in a few seconds’, Isaac said, ‘He’s just upstairs unpacking in the spare bedroom.’

‘What for?’ Myrtle asked.

‘You see’, Isaac replied sadly, ‘He’ll be needing to stay here with us for a while until he finds a new place to live.’

‘Why?’ Myrtle asked.

‘Well, my dear’, Isaac replied, ‘The truth is…his house burnt down.’

‘What?’ Myrtle said in disbelief, ‘How tragic!’

‘Yes’, Isaac said, ‘I was one of the first responders at the scene; it was a ferocious fire that refused to be extinguished for a good few hours, resulting in the evacuation of nearby shops and residences, until it burned itself out.’

‘Poor Chris’, Myrtle said as she shook her head, ‘He’s more than welcome to stay as long as he needs to, given the circumstances.’

‘That’s basically what I said on our way over’, Isaac said.

‘Anyway though’, Myrtle said as she placed a small stack of plates on the table, ‘Let’s dish these up!’

‘Ah, Chris’, Isaac said at the foot of the stairs as the former man came down, ‘There’s a surprise for you in the kitchen.'

‘Ok’, Chris said as he followed Isaac down the hall and through the big white door at the end.

‘’Chris’, Isaac said, ‘I’d like you to meet my wife, Myrtle.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Myrtle’, Chris said, ‘I’m Chris, full name is Christopher.’

‘So I’ve heard’, Myrtle said, ‘Isaac told me about you and what happened earlier today.’

‘I know’, Chris said, ‘I just can’t believe it, you know, after all I’ve been through and all…’

‘Say what?’ Isaac and Myrtle asked simultaneously.

‘You wouldn’t understand…’ Chris replied sadly.

‘Come on’, Isaac said, ‘You can tell us, we won’t bite.’

‘Fine, then’, Chris said a few long seconds later, ‘I’ve been in jail for the last two years.’

‘What on earth for?’ Myrtle asked with a shocked voice.

‘Well…I know this sounds crazy, but…’ Chris replied, ‘…but I’m a h—’

‘You’re a what?’ Isaac asked.

‘I’m a…a…um…’ Chris said, ‘Sorry, it’s too hard for me too say, especially with the door open.’

‘Ok then’, Isaac said when he got up and closed the door before sitting back down, ‘Now, what were you going to tell us?’

‘I’m a…’ Chris began before lowering his voice to a whisper, ‘I’m a…homosexual.’

‘Really?’ Isaac asked, ‘That’s it?’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Myrtle said.

‘And to think you were locked up for all that time for something that isn’t even a crime’, Isaac said, ‘It’s unbelievable!’

‘What??’ Chris asked, ‘You don’t find me repulsive?’

‘No, of course not!’ Isaac replied.

‘Me neither’, Myrtle said, ‘You’re a human being, Chris; a human who was created in God’s image.’

‘Myrtle’s right, Chris’, Isaac said, ‘We’re all God’s children, no matter what our tendencies or preferences are in this life.’

‘But…’ Chris said, ‘Won’t God send me to Hell as soon as I die because of it?’

‘Where on earth did you learn that nonsense?’ Myrtle asked.

‘My parents’, Chris replied, ‘They were very deeply religious, so much so that most of my siblings left as soon as they left home.’

‘Anyway though’, Isaac said, ‘Let’s eat these brownies!’

‘Brownies??’ Chris asked as he removed the towelette covering his plate, only to come out in red spots all over his arms and legs.

‘Oh, my goodness, Chris!’ Isaac said in a panic, ‘Here, I think you should come with me right away!’

‘Ugh…’ Chris said, ‘I feel weird.’

‘Come on, let’s lie down in the living room on the couch.’

‘Ok’, Chris said upon standing up before following Isaac down the hall while Myrtle rushed to the phone to call for Dr. Fred.

**An hour later…**

‘He’s doing fine’, Dr. Fred said to Myrtle and Isaac in the kitchen, ‘He just can’t be around chocolate or cocoa, that’s all.’

‘I see’, Myrtle said, ‘So that means no brownies then?’

‘I’m afraid so’, Dr. Fred said, ‘Same goes for cakes, cookies, hot chocolate, chocolate milk, ice-cream or other foods made with cocoa or that have it as an ingredient; even the vapours will set him off.’

‘Ok, then’, Isaac said, ‘We will be very careful from now on.’

‘Does this mean I have to give up using or having chocolate around here?’ Myrtle asked.

‘You can still have it in the house, as long as it’s kept in a tightly sealed container’, Dr. Fred replied, ‘Also, when using it in baking, you must keep the kitchen door closed completely at all times and open the windows for ventilation.’

‘Understood’, Myrtle said, ‘Anyway, thank you for coming over.’

‘No problem’, Dr. Fred said before leaving, ‘Good afternoon to you all.’

‘Ugh…’ Chris said upon sitting up just as Isaac entered the room, ‘What happened?’

‘Good, you’ve cleared up’, Isaac said upon noticing the red spots had disappeared

‘It was my allergy again, wasn’t it?’ Chris asked upon remembering, ‘The cocoa one, right?’

‘Yes’, Isaac replied, ‘You gave us quite a scare.’

‘I can imagine’, Chris said, ‘Used to be very difficult during childhood, especially with birthday parties, Christmas and Easter; I had to be kept a safe distance from all the food whenever someone brought chocolate – windy and wet days were even more of a nightmare…’

‘I understand’, Isaac said, ‘I was severely allergic to eggs as a child.’

‘But you can obviously eat them now, since they’re in those brownies’, Chris said.

‘Yes, thank goodness’, Isaac said, ‘Goodness knows what I would have done otherwise…’

‘At least you can enjoy the rest of the brownies’, Chris sighed.

‘Not to mention we can’t accuse you of stealing any…or even going near them’, Isaac said.

‘Yes, I suppose so’, Chris chuckled, ‘But seriously though, it’s terrible to be unable to enjoy such a delicious food.’

‘Cheer up, Chris’, Isaac said, ‘There are plenty of other desserts that taste just as good.’

‘That’s what my parent’s used to say as well’, Chris said, ‘Not to mention my love for lemon pie because of it; if I hadn’t been allergic to cocoa, I probably would never have tried it.’

‘Then it’s settled!’ Isaac said, ‘Myrtle can make a lemon pie tomorrow for you as an apology.’

‘Thank you’, Chris said, ‘Although it’s my fault really; I should’ve informed you beforehand.’

‘No, it’s ok’, Isaac said, ‘We should’ve asked.’


	19. Chapter 19

_May 17 th_

‘Myrtle’, Isaac said as he unlocked the front door, ‘I’ll just go and pick Chris up from the station; he’s coming in on the 11:40 from Manchester.’

‘’Ok’, Myrtle said, ‘See you soon.’

‘ _Finally’_ , Chris thought as the train pulled into the station, _‘Home at last!’_

He made his way outside the carriage and navigated the crowded platform towards the luggage car to retrieve his suitcase, where he saw Isaac sitting on a bench.

‘Hey, Isaac’, he said upon approaching him, ‘Thanks for coming to pick me up.’

‘No problem’, Isaac said, ‘Besides, how was your trip to Manchester?’

‘Splendid’, Chris said as they walked though the main building and onto the busy street ‘Although it was raining when I boarded the train to come home.’

‘Typical’, Isaac said ‘It either seems to be cold and wet or warm and sunny at this time of year.’

‘Indeed’, Chris said, ‘It can be hot with a clear blue sky one day, only for the next day to be the complete opposite with miserable weather.’

‘I know what you mean’, Isaac said, ‘Anyway, Myrtle’s looking forward to seeing you again.

‘I am to’, Chris said as they rounded a corner a few minutes later and made their way diagonally across the street towards the house at the end.

‘We’re home’, Isaac said as he locked the door.

‘Please’, Myrtle said from the living room, ‘Come on in.’

‘Sure’, Isaac said as he and Chris followed her into the room.

‘So, Chris’, Myrtle said as they all took their seats, ‘How have the last few days been for you?’

‘Well, firstly, the weather was wonderful for the majority of my trip, as I was saying to Isaac on the way home’, Chris said as flashbacks of the last few days – particularly the second night - filled his mind, ‘Anyway, I met up with a couple of friends the evening after I arrived and had dinner and a few drinks at the pub across the road from the hotel I was staying at…’

_May 15 th_

_6:40 p.m._

_Chris was sitting at a table hidden away in the corner when two other middle-aged men approached him._

_‘Hey, Harry and Arnold, good to see you’, he said, ‘Please, take a seat.’_

_‘We haven’t seen you in ages, Chris’, Arnold said, ‘Where have you been all these years?’_

_‘Well, I’ve got some good news and bad news’, Chris said, ‘The good news is I’m still living in York.’_

_‘Great’, Arnold said before whispering as quietly as possible, ‘Perhaps, someday, we should…let’s just say…come for a visit, maybe?’_

_‘That would be good’, Chris said, ‘However, the bad news is that the flat I was renting was destroyed in a fire last month.’_

_‘Good heavens!’ a horrified Harry said, ‘I’m so sorry to hear that; it must have been awful.’_

_‘It was’, Chris said, ‘Especially since I lost everything except a couple of family photos and the clothes I’m wearing now. However, I’m now lodging with one of the firemen who was there that day and his wife until another place becomes available.’_

_‘At least you’ve got a roof over your head’, Arnold said, ‘That’s the main thing.’_

_‘Not to mention they’ve bought me new clothes as well’, Chris said._

_‘Anyway’, Harry said, ‘Where are the menus? I’m starving.’_

_‘Me too’, Arnold said._

_As if on cue, Chris handed them both a menu._

_‘I took the liberty of bringing these over for you when I came in’, he said.  
_

_‘Thanks, Chris’, Arnold a Harry said as they opened the menus._

**_8:35…_ **

****

****

****

****

_‘Right’, Arnold said as the three of them paid and left, ‘Now for the second part of the evening.’_

_‘Ok’, Chris said as the door closed behind him, ‘What is this second part?’_

_‘Come with us and you’ll find out’, Arnold said._

_‘Sure’, Chris said as they walked toward the antiques shop on the corner before turning onto a little-known side street._

_‘Here we are’, Harry said as Arnold knocked on an unmarked door that had a bold red line painted across the top.’_

_‘Oh…I remember this place’, Chris said once inside with the door safely closed, ‘It’s where we first met all those years ago, isn’t it?’_

_‘Yes’, Arnold said, before whispering, ‘Thank goodness the police have never found out about this place in all its fifteen years.’_

_‘Yes’, Harry said, ‘There used to be an establishment like this but much larger and more popular in the centre of the city, but, alas, it was closed down last year after a member of the public got suspicious and tipped the police off.’_

_‘I see’, Chris said, ‘Anyway, thanks for bringing me here tonight.’_

_‘No problem, C-dub’, Harry said before they kissed._

_The next few hours were filled with dancing and laughter until the clock struck eleven._

‘Eleven!??’ _Chris thought before saying, ‘Shit. I better get back to the hotel!’_

_‘Come on, Chris’, ‘Harry said while sitting on an old three-seat couch in front of him, ‘Can’t you spend a bit more time here?’_

_‘Sorry’, Chris said, ‘But I have to go right now.’_

_‘Please?’ Arnold asked while giving him a look that could only be described as pure lust._

_‘Well…uh…’ he began before finally giving in a few seconds later._

_‘Dah, what the hell?’ he said as he ran towards the couch and flung himself into the empty seat, albeit with so much force that it tipped backwards with a thud as the back hit the floor._

_‘Blimey’, Harry said, ‘That was unexpected.’_

_‘Well’, Arnold said upon standing up, ‘I can finally say that I’ve been tipped backwards while sitting down.'_

_‘I must not know my own strength’, Chris said upon standing up and looking at the tipped-over couch, ‘Anyway, we better put this up the right way.’_

_‘Agreed’, Harry said as they proceeded to lift it back up._


	20. Chapter 20

_June 20_

‘Happy 35th birthday, Chris!’ Isaac said as the other man came into the living room.

‘Thanks’, Chris said upon sitting down, ‘So, what are the plans for today?’

‘Well’, Myrtle began, ‘To begin, I and Isaac thought…’

Suddenly, the dog started barking as if someone was attempting to break into the section.

‘Oh’, Myrtle said to Isaac, ‘They’re here. Better go and answer the door.’

‘Ok’, Isaac said before leaving the room briefly.

‘I don’t mean to intrude, but’, Chris said, ‘Who has come to visit?’

‘Ah’, Myrtle said, ‘It’s a surprise.’

‘Very well’, Chris said, ‘So, anyway…

‘Ah’, Isaac said upon walking up to the gate, ‘Nathan and Janice, so pleased you could make it.’

‘Pleased to see you again, Dad’, Nathan said as they shook hands through the bars, ‘We’re so sorry our son couldn’t make it, but, you know, work commitments…’

‘I understand’, Isaac said, referring to his job as a fireman, ‘I can be summoned to work at anytime of the day or night; emergency services can’t afford to take any breaks.’

‘Anyway’, Janice said while Isaac closed the gate behind her, ‘I hear you and Myrtle have had a lodger for the last few months.’

‘Yes’, Isaac said as they walked up to the front door, ‘I decided to take him in after his house in the city burned down in April.’

‘Dear heavens’, Nathan said in disbelief, ‘Poor man…and to lose everything like that, and so quickly too…it’s unbelievable.’

‘I know’, Isaac said, ‘However, he’s doing fine now, and I know he’ll be eager to meet you both, especially Janice, so let’s go inside.’

‘Ok’, Janice said as they opened the door and walked through.

‘Well’, Myrtle said as Nathan walked into the living room, followed by Janice and Isaac, ‘If it isn’t Nathan!’

‘Pleased to see you again too, Mum’, Nathan said as they hugged, ‘How’s life these days?’

‘Peaceful and quiet’, Myrtle said, ‘Not like the old days when you were here.’

‘Ah yes, I remember’, Nathan said, ‘I was up to all sorts of mischief as a child, wasn’t I?’

‘How could I forget?’ Myrtle said, ‘Especially when you were sent home from school for that practical joke on the headmistress…’

‘I suppose I _might_ have gone a bit too far with that…’ a slightly red-faced Nathan said, ‘At least I never did it again…’

‘Anyway’, Nathan said as Janice walked up to and stood beside him, ‘I’m sure you remember my wife, Janice.’

‘Yes’, Myrtle said, ‘I heard you moved to Southampton after the honeymoon.’

‘Correct’, Nathan said, ‘We have a nice villa to the west of the city with a large, spacious garden; as I’ve said before, I’m so fortunate to have married an upper-middle class woman like Janice.’

‘Yes’, Myrtle said, ‘I and Isaac were pleased for you both since the day you announced your engagement.’

Meanwhile, Chris had just returned from the bathroom when he noticed Nathan and Janice talking to Myrtle.

‘Ah, Chris’, Myrtle said, ‘I’d like you to meet my and Isaac’s son, Nathan…’

‘Pleased to meet you, Nathan’, Chris said.

‘…and his wife and our daughter-in-law, Janice’, Myrtle said.

Chris found this woman’s name and deep green eyes somewhat familiar.

 _‘Could it be??’_ he thought, _‘Janice??’_

‘Nice to see you, Janice’, Chris said, I’m Chris.’

‘Pleased to meet you’, Janice said before thinking, _‘Hmmm…I wonder – that hair and moustache look familiar somehow…’_

‘Ok, everyone’, Isaac said, ‘Who wants cake?’

‘Yes, please’, everyone said before heading into the kitchen.

‘Delicious!’ Janice said a while later, ‘What flavour was that?’

‘It was vanilla sponge cake with strawberry icing’, Myrtle said.

‘Well, thanks for that’, Janice said, ‘I enjoyed it.’

‘Ah’, Isaac said, ‘There’s plenty more food to be eaten.’

‘Yes’, Myrtle said before walking over to the bench and returning with the biggest lemon pie that Janice had ever seen, ‘And now for the best part.’

‘Whoa!’ Chris said, ‘You baked this…for me??’

‘Yes’, Myrtle said, ‘I remembered Isaac telling me how much you love lemon pie after the incident with the brownies, so I decided to bake this for your birthday.’

‘Thank you!’ Chris said.

‘No problem ‘, Myrtle said.

**An hour later…**

Janice was looking around upstairs after using the bathroom, when she noticed a framed photograph on Chris’ bedside table.

‘What’s this?’ she asked herself when she picked it up and sat on the bed.

_‘Hmm…’_ she thought while looking at the picture of two adults and a young boy of no more than nine years old at most, _‘Why do these people look so familiar?’_

It was then that Chris came into the room.

‘Well, well’, he said, ‘I see you’ve found one of my photos.’

‘Yes’, Janice said, ‘Tell me, are these your parents and you?’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘Taken during the summer of 1894; I was nine at the time.’

‘I see’, Janice said, ‘The reason I say this is that the two adults look exactly like my parents.’

‘Really?’ Chris said, ‘How strange.’

However, when Janice returned the photograph to the bedside table, it fell out of the frame.

‘Goodness me’, she said, ‘I’m so sorry.’

‘It’s ok’, Chris said, ‘The frame’s getting old and worn anyway.’

However, there was some writing on the back the confirmed Janice’s suspicion.

_“Tony, Joanne & Christopher Webster_

_August 1894”_

‘Dear me!’ she said upon turning the photo over and asking about the girl in the background, ‘If I’m not mistaken, then I’d have to say that’s me!’

‘I can confirm that it is you, Janice’, Chris said, ‘You had been doing something else when this photo was taken and must have been accidentally included in it.’

Suddenly, all of what she’d just heard about the photo, plus the brownie incident (they had cocoa as a main ingredient) Chris’ love of lemon pie and his birthday being today could only mean one thing.

‘I can’t believe it!!’ she exclaimed, ‘You’re my brother!!’

‘I knew you’d get it eventually’, Chris said as they hugged, ‘This is the best birthday ever!’

‘Are you sure about that?’ Janice said, ‘Because I think Isaac has a surprise for you downstairs.’

‘Ok’, Chris said as they both left the room, ‘Let’s go and see what it is.’

‘WHAT???’ Chris asked, ‘You…I’ve got a new place to live??’

‘Yes’, Ivan said as Chris looked through the photographs, ‘The landlord said you can move in at any time.’

‘Th…thank you’, a teary-eyed Chris said, ‘You don’t know how much this means to me.’

‘No problem’, Isaac said, ‘We’ve liked having you stay with us.’

‘Yes, well’, Chris said, ‘If that’s the case, I’d like to move in tomorrow.’

‘Right then’, Isaac said, ‘Tomorrow it is!’


	21. Chapter 21

_November 27_

_1927_

_9:35 p.m._

‘I’m going to Turton’s after this for a while’, Chris said from across the bar to Thomas Barrow, casing the bartender and the man he was talking with to stop momentarily before resuming in their conversation, ‘Do you want to come?’

‘Sure, why not?’, Thomas said before remembering what he was there for in the first place, ‘On second thought, I’m waiting for someone to meet me here.’

‘I’m sure they won’t mind if you leave for a while’, Chris said, ‘They can always come looking for you…’

‘Well’, Thomas said before agreeing reluctantly, ‘Ok then, I’ll go. Waiting is starting to get boring anyway. Oh, and by the way, what’s your name?’

‘Name’s Chris Webster’, Chris said before they both stood up.

_‘Better tell the bartender what’s going on’_ , Thomas thought.

‘Hey’, he said to the bartender, ‘If a man by the name of Richard Ellis comes in and asks where Thomas Barrow has gone, please tell him that I’ve gone to Tur-’

‘Never mind that’, Chris interrupted, ‘Let’s just say we’ll be around the local area.’

‘Yes’, Thomas said, ‘Anyway, we won’t be far.’

‘I see’, the bartender said, ‘Ok. Will do.’

‘Thank you’, Thomas said before he and Chris left the building.

 _‘Hmm…’_ , the bartender thought suspiciously, _‘I just wonder…’_

Indeed, a while later, Richard came in and asked him about Thomas’ whereabouts.

‘Oh’, he said, ‘He said he was going to go to someplace in the local area with some other guy; I’m sure the name started with _T_ or something.’

‘Ok’, Richard said before he left, ‘Thank you.’

As soon as the main door had closed, another patron – a middle-aged man who had heard and seen everything – walked up to the bar.

‘Can I help you, sir?’ the bartender asked.

‘I overheard everything’, the other man said before whispering, ‘Those two guys who left…if I’m not mistaken, they were on their way to Turton’s, right?’

‘Um…yes’, the bartender said, ‘Why is that so important?’

‘Well’, the other man whispered before leaning in close, ‘I’ve heard rumours about that place being spread around town…’

‘What rumours?’ the bartender whispered.

‘Let’s just say…’ the other man whispered, ‘Turton’s isn’t at all what it seems on the outside. In other words, that warehouse in the middle of town…is hiding something _completely_ different…and quite possibly, illegal.’

‘I see’, the bartender whispered as he connected the evening’s event together, ‘Goodness me, you’re right!’

‘I think you should pick up the phone and call the police’, the other man whispered, ‘Tell them that you’ve been led to believe that the warehouse down the road is hiding illegal activity.’

‘Yes’, the bartender said before walking into a small room with a telephone in it and connecting through the switchboards to the police station.

‘Good evening, sir’, he said into the mouthpiece before closing the door, ‘I’ve got a lead…’

**A short while later…**

Richard was walking down the road when a group of policemen ran past him towards a large building.

 _‘What in the world??’_ he thought as he followed them, desperate to see what was going on.

However, he was horrified to discover that the policemen had gathered outside Turton’s and were planning their next move.

 _‘Oh no…’_ Richard thought, knowing all too well what was going to happen next.

‘Never in my life would I have dreamed this!’ Thomas exclaimed as he and Chris danced.

‘Me neither’, Chris said, ‘Out of all the times I’ve been here, tonight’s been the best.’

‘Thanks’, Thomas said while blushing.

Suddenly, the doors boomed open while voices shouting _“POLICE! POLICE!”_ echoed around the room.

 _‘Oh, great…’_ Chris thought as everyone around them stopped to see what was going on, _‘Not this again!’_

‘What’s going on?’ Thomas asked.

‘It seems we’ve been raided’, Chris said as patrons were bought downstairs, ‘I suppose you know what that means…’

‘Goodness!’ Thomas said nervously, ‘Y-you don’t mean…’

Chris nodded in response.

‘Oh…’ Thomas said before swallowing nervously.

‘That’s right’, one of the policemen said to Thomas, causing him to jump in shock, ‘You, and everyone else here are under arrest; I’m assuming you all know why…’

Thomas stood there momentarily, mouth agape as horrified gasps came from the other patrons.

‘But…’ he said, ‘I’ve never been here before; this is my first time.’

 _‘Dear me…’_ Chris thought as he buried his face in his hands in disbelief, _‘Thomas, you’re an idiot.’_

‘Don’t be smart!’ the policeman said, ‘You’re here now, and you’re coming with us!’

Thomas then turned to Chris for assistance.

‘Rule number one: **Never** talk back to or argue with the police; it never works’, Chris said.

‘I can see that now’, Thomas said.

‘Yes’, another voice said, ‘You _would_ know that, wouldn’t you…Webster??’

‘What the…?’ Chris said before recognising the owner of the voice, ‘Kenneth Edgars!’

‘Yes, Webster’, Kenneth said, ‘We meet again!’

‘I’ll _never_ forget what happened last time we met…’ Chris said, referring to _that_ embarrassing blunder in 1918, ‘That _hurt_ , you know, it _bloody_ **hurt**!’

‘Watch your mouth!’ Kenneth said, ‘Or I’ll give you something to complain about!’

Upon noticing Kenneth’s baton, Chris backed down.

‘Ok, ok!’ he said, ‘I’ll be a good boy! Just…please don’t hit me!’

‘Shut your trap, pansy!’ Kenneth said before facing everyone else, ‘And that goes of all of you as well!’

‘All right, everyone, move out!’ one of the other policemen said as the patrons were led out the wide-open doors, ‘Come on, move it, perverts!!’

Meanwhile, Richard watched in utter horror from a safe distance as the chaos unfolded.

 _‘Holy shit!’_ he thought, _‘Fuck!! This can’t be happening…’_

Later, within the holding cell of the local police station, Thomas talked to Chris about the night’s events.

‘Chris’, he said, ‘You know how you and the policeman were talking back there; it seemed like you had known each other, am I right?’

‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘First met in March 1918; thought he loved me until he arrested me… _in my own home_!’

‘What??’ Thomas asked in shock, ‘How is that possible?? You’re always careful, right?’

‘Not careful enough, unfortunately’, Chris said, ‘You see, he had gone undercover as one of our sort…and I was stupid enough to fall for the trap; he even visited me in hospital after nearly drowning and came back home the next day, which is when it all happened…’

‘Blimey’, Thomas said, ‘I can’t believe it.’

‘I couldn’t either at first’, Chris said, ‘It took a few seconds to register in my mind that I’d been tricked.’

‘You must have been angry with yourself that day’, Thomas said, ‘I know I would’ve been.’

‘I was’, Chris said, ‘And I still am, to a point, even though I try to forget about it.’

‘Anyway’, Thomas said, ‘You mentioned nearly drowning before going to hospital. What was that about?’

‘Very well’, Chris said, ‘I’ve never told anyone this, but it was an attempt on my life.’

‘WHAT!?’ Thomas asked in shock.

‘I jumped off a bridge into a river face-down’, Chris replied, ‘The next thing I knew, I was in a hospital bed with dry clothes on.’

‘Chris don’t do that’, Thomas said before showing him the scar on one of his wrists, ‘I’ve attempted to end it all as well. Trust me, it will only cause a whole lot of grief if you do.’

‘I suppose you’re right’, Chris said before being interrupted by the cell door opening.

‘Mr. Thomas Barrow’, a voice boomed, ‘You’re free!’

‘What?’ Thomas said, ‘I can’t believe it!’

‘Well, you’d better start believing!’ the voice’s owner said as Thomas walked out a free man before the door slammed shut, ‘Now, get out!’

‘Hey!’ Chris said, ‘What about me?’

‘Shut up, lavender!’ the voice said, ‘You’re not going anywhere!’

‘Well, Chris’, Thomas said, ‘I suppose this is goodbye.’

‘Goodbye’, Chris said, ‘I’ll miss you.’

‘Me too’, Thomas said before a hand dragged him down the hall.

**The next day…**

_‘Typical…just typical’_ , Chris thought as he stood in the courthouse with the other patrons, _‘Once again I’ve been found guilty and sentenced to…’_

‘Six months!’ the judge said as he banged the gavel down.

 _‘Huh??’_ Chris thought, _‘How strange…I thought it would be yet another two years.’_


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger Warnings: Violence and a somewhat (slightly) graphic depiction of prison rape.
> 
> Kudos if you spot the Spongebob Squarepants reference. ;-D

_November 30_

‘Everyone’, Chris said in the main hall, ‘I’ve got a confession to make.’

‘Sure’, a short, black-haired man named Henry said, ‘What is it?’

‘The truth is…’ Chris said before finally admitting, ‘I’m the one who put us in here.’

‘What?’ another man, Michael, asked, ‘What makes you say that?’

‘Well’, Chris admitted disappointedly, ‘You see, when I met that Thomas Barrow man on the night of the raid, I did something stupid and dangerous – instead of walking up to and telling him directly, I said, from across the bar, and in a voice loud enough that other people could hear me, that I was on my way to Turton’s. I’m sure the bartender got suspicious after that and called the police, which resulted in the raid.’

‘Oh, Chris’, Henry said, ‘It’s not your fault. The place could have been raided at any time.’

‘I’m a total failure, I tell you!’ Chris sobbed, ‘A worthless prick!!’

‘No, you’re not’, Jack said while hugging him, ‘You just made a mistake, that’s all.’

‘But, look at where all of you have ended up as a result’, Chris sobbed, ‘This ugly, cold, depressing dump of a place called jail!’

‘Yes, but’, Jack said, ‘At least we still have each other.’

‘As for me’, Chris sobbed as he shoved Jack away, ‘I _bloody well_ deserve to be locked up here, as I’m a **fucking** idiot!!’

It was then a guard burst in from an adjacent corridor and grabbed Chris by the shirt.

‘RIGHT, Webster!!’ he growled, ‘Looks like **you** need to be isolated for a while!!’

‘Fuck you!’ Chris said, ‘Fuck you all! Fuck the world! Fuck me!’

‘Take him to the isolation cells’, the guard said to his two colleagues outside the door.

‘Yes’, they said before dragging Chris by the arms across the facility, with bouts of laughter coming from the other cells and inmates along the way.

‘What have we done??’ Jack said as the door closed before facing the others, ‘That poor, hurting soul needs us, and we’ve turned a blind eye.’

‘AAAHHH!!’ Chris screamed as he was shut in one of the tiny cells at the far end of the building, ‘Fucking piece of shit! WANKING ARSEHOLE!!! Why!!? WHY!!??’

‘Be quiet!!’ a guard shouted upon kicking the door before leaving, ‘You’re to stay in there until further notice!!’

The next few hours until dinnertime didn’t help to calm Chris at all, until he realised he’d trashed the room by throwing the bedsheets everywhere and overflowing the basin.

 _‘Shit!’_ he thought upon opening his eyes, _‘What have I done?’_

Unfortunately, the slit in the door opened just as he was deciding what to do next.

‘CHRISTOPHER!!!’ a voice screamed before the door boomed open.

 _‘Holy fuck!!’_ Chris thought as a guard roughly shoved him against the back wall.

‘Did **you** do THIS!??’ he asked, ‘DID YOU!!?’

Chris nodded nervously in response.

‘RIGHT!!!’ the guard boomed as he violently threw Chris to the floor and kicked him, ‘Clean it up, worthless pile of FILTH!!’

‘Ok, ok!’ Chris said while shaking out of fear of being struck again, ‘I’ll s-start right n-now!’

‘Good’, the guard said before leaving, ‘I’ll be back in a while to make sure you have, or there’ll be plenty more where that came from!!’

 _‘Bellend!!’_ Chris thought angrily as the door slammed shut, leaving him alone once again.

_December 27_

‘Why?’ Chris sobbed, ‘Why? W-why do you keep d-doing this to me??’

‘Don’t you get it, fool!??’ Chris’ new cellmate, Anthony, said, ‘I’ve always loved you since you came out of isolation.’

‘T-this isn’t…’ Chris said before he was pulled out of view from the corridor, only to cry out in pain when a solid object was rammed up inside him.

‘Do you feel it, Chris?’ Anthony said as he thrusted in and out, ‘Oh yeah…come on, feel it, feel it.’

Over the next few minutes, the entire wing of the building could hear Chris’ cries of pain and pleasure, resulting, once again, in laughter and gossip spreading among the other inmates.

_‘Oh shi-’_ Chris thought before exploding onto the bedsheets and wall as Anthony pulled out and did the same.

‘Phew!’ Anthony said while looking at the mess, ‘That’s going to need cleaning up.’

 _‘I **hate** you!’ _Chris thought before saying, ‘Of course.’

‘And you can help me carry these down to the laundry’, Anthony said.

‘Ok’, Chris said while getting dressed.

The next morning brought an unexpected surprise for Chris.

‘Chris Webster’, a guard said as he opened the cell door, ‘You’re wanted in the warden’s office, now.’

 _‘Oh great’_ , he thought, _‘What have I done this time?’_

‘Whatever it was’, Anthony said, referring to the expression on the guard’s face, ‘It must have _really_ pissed them off.’

‘Coming’, Chris said before leaving the cell, ‘See you later, Anthony.’

‘Please follow me’, the guard said as they made their way through countless corridors and doors, all while receiving accusing glares and remarks like _“Who’s been a naughty boy?”_ and _‘I wonder what the lavender mad-man’s done now?’_

‘Here we are’, the guard said as they stopped outside a brown door that had _“Warden”_ painted in white on it, ‘I wish you luck facing him.’

‘Thank you, sir, I…’ Chris began as he turned around, only to find that the guard had disappeared down the corridor.

 _‘Huh?’_ he thought just as the door opened.

‘Mr. Webster’, the warden said with an inviting smile, ‘Please, come in and take a seat.’

‘Thank you, sir’, Chris said as he closed the door behind him.

‘Now, Mr. Webster’, the warden said from behind his desk, ‘It has come to my attention that…’

‘If this is about the wine found in my and Anthony’s cell, I didn’t do it’, Chris said, ‘It was Anthony’s idea.’

‘Thank you for the information’, the warden said, ‘We’ll have a talk to him about the matter soon. However, that’s not what I summoned you here for.’

‘O…k?’ Chris said in a confused tone, ‘Then why did you bring me up here?’

As if on cue, the warden’s voice took on a more serious tone.

‘Mr. Webster’, he said, ‘You’ll never believe this, but…you’ll be free from tomorrow.’

Chris was absolutely flabbergasted and speechless upon hearing this.

‘What???’ he asked a few long seconds later, ‘Are you crazy??’

‘It turns out that there was some sort of mistake made during judicial proceedings’, the warden said, ‘Something about there not being enough evidence, I believe.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Chris said, ‘Have you told the others?

‘Yes’, the warden said, ‘I’ve been informing them of the situation during the last few days, excluding the Christmas break, of course.’

‘Thank you!’ Chris exclaimed, ‘Thank you so much!! I’ll finally be free!’

It was then that the warden decided to admit a secret he’d been hiding for years.

‘Sorry to interrupt’, he said, ‘But I have something to show you.’

‘Ok’, Chris said, ‘What is it?’

‘Now’, the warden said as he shifted the small metal filing cabinet beside the desk to the side, revealing a near-invisible safe embedded in the wall which wouldn’t be noticed if it weren’t for the white numbers on the combination lock, ‘If I show you this, you must promise to never tell anyone, no matter what. Understand?’

‘Yes, sir’, Chris said.

‘Good’, the warden said as he opened the safe, took something out and placed it onto the desk.

‘Whoa!’ Chris said in awe, ‘You’re a supporter??’

‘Not just a supporter…’ the warden said, keeping his voice to a minimum volume, ‘I’m an activist advocating…for the rights of people like you.’

‘I can’t believe it!’ Chris said, ‘If I’m dreaming this, I don’t want to ever wake up.’

‘Oh no, Mr. Webster’, the warden said, ‘You’re not dreaming; this is real.’

 _‘Oh my…’_ Chris thought, _‘God really does love me!’_

‘Thank you so, so much!’ he sobbed, ‘I never thought this day would come.’

‘I’m happy for you too – all of you, actually’, the warden said before changing to a serious tone again, ‘Now, Mr. Webster, when you go back down in a minute, you’re to tell no-one that you’re to be released tomorrow; if anyone asks, just say you’re being transferred to another facility. Understand?’

‘Yes, sir’, Chris said.

‘Good’, the warden said as he stood up and opened the door, ‘You’re free to go.’

‘Thank you, sir’, Chris said.

‘So’, Anthony said during lunch, ‘What did the warden have to say?’

‘Well, it’s a funny story’, Chris lied in mock disappointment, ‘Apparently, something that I’d done yesterday while I was on laundry duty was _so_ horrendous that they’ve decided to transfer me to another facility from tomorrow.’

‘What a shame’, Anthony said, ‘Anyway, I wish you luck with the move and settling in.’

‘Thanks’, Chris said, ‘I sure hope it goes smoothly.’

At long last, the sun had risen on the day of Chris’ release.

‘Well’, he said to Anthony, ‘I suppose this is goodbye.’

‘’I’m going to miss having you around’, Anthony said, ‘Goodbye and good luck.’

‘Me too’, Chris said just as the cell door opened.

‘Mr. Webster’, a guard said from the corridor, ‘It is time.’

 _‘Goodbye’_ , Chris thought before following the guard through a maze of passageways and into a small room just before the main entrance.

‘Right’, the guard said, ‘I’ll leave you to change into your normal clothes behind the door over there.’

‘Ok’, Chris said before walking in and closing the door.

‘Phew!’ he said upon emerging a few minutes later, ‘I’m glad to be out of those! So, does this mean I’m free to go?’

‘Yes’, the guard said, ‘In fact, I believe everyone else is out there waiting for you.’

‘Ok then’, Chris said before walking through the main doors, ‘Goodbye. Thanks for everything!’

‘Goodbye, Mr. Webster’, the guard said, ‘Have a nice life!’

 _‘This is it’_ , Chris thought as the doors closed behind him, _‘It’s good to be free, again.’_

‘Oh, my goodness!’ a figure exclaimed as he ran up to meet him, ‘Chris Webster! You’ve finally made it out!’

‘Yes, I have, Jack’, Chris said, ‘Anyway, where are the others?’

‘We’re all around the corner waiting to be transported away from here and back into society’, Jack said, ‘Everyone’s eager to meet you.’

‘Me too’, Chris said as they headed towards the western end of the building and around the corner, ‘Let’s go.’

‘Cor blimey!’ Michael said while everyone else fell silent, ‘C-dub! I can’t believe it!’

‘Neither can I, Michael’, Chris said, ‘It’s a dream come true!’

‘I know’, Jack said, ‘I couldn’t believe it when the warden said that he’s fighting on our side for change.’

‘None of us could’, Michael said.

‘Me neither. I didn’t think that people like him existed before we met yesterday’, Chris said, ‘However, I do wonder about those “judicial errors” he talked about.’

‘Ah, yes. The “lack of evidence”’, Henry said, ‘I believe I have the answer. You see, when I was up in the warden’s office a few days ago, he told me that he was so horrified and angered when he read about the raid in the newspaper the next day that he decided that something had to be done, so he contacted and arranged to meet with the judge at his house in downtown York within the next week to discuss the matter. Fortunately for him, Judge McKinnon is no stranger to accepting bribes to have sentences overturned, so he offered him “a large sum of money” and told him to change the “guilty” plea to “not guilty” based on “a lack of sufficient evidence”, thus securing our release.’

‘Yes’, Michael said, ‘It just so happens that both men know my brother-in-law, who is a corrupt policeman and will gladly accept a bribe himself. Additionally, he was present on the night of the raid and saw and heard everything that went on, so he was paid to voice support for the overturned conviction while staying silent on what really happened.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yes, I decided that Chris and the other men who were arrested deserved a happy ending, so here it is. :)


	23. Epilogue

_January 3_

_1928_

_Thomas couldn’t believe his eyes when he got off the train._

‘’Oh, my goodness!’ _he thought as he stood on the platform, mouth agape._

_‘So, anyway…’ Richard said before realising what was going on, ‘Thomas?’_

_It was then that the latter spoke, startling Richard with the sudden noise._

_‘I can’t believe it!’ he said as another man approached him, ‘Chris! You’re free!’_

_‘Wait…’ a confused Richard said, ‘What??? But…the newspaper…it said six months.’_

_‘Well’, Chris said, ‘Let’s just say that I and the others were released early thanks to a kindly deed by some of the higher-ups.’_

_‘What do you mean?’ Thomas asked._

_‘’It’s a long story’, Chris began, ‘It all started in the warden’s office a few days ago…’_

**One interesting story later…**

_‘Whoa!’ Thomas and Richard said in unison, ‘And to think that_ a prison warden _is fighting for people like us…it’s unbelievable!’_

_‘It’s not just him’, Chris said before whispering, ‘He also bribed the judge to have the conviction overturned. Also, one of the policemen who was there that night was, let’s just say, a bit corrupt; he risked his job and jail himself to set us free.’_

_‘Amazing!’ Thomas said, ‘That must have been the best Christmas gift you’d ever had!’_

_‘Yes’, Chris said, ‘I believe it’s the way of the future also.’_

_‘Yes’, Thomas said, ‘We’re all longing for a time when it’s no longer illegal; where no-one bats an eye at our way of life.’_

_‘Exactly’, Chris said, ‘I look forward to it too.’_

_‘Yes’, Thomas and Richard said in unison, ‘I’m sure we’ve all been_ scarred and bruised _in one way or another, sometimes literally, throughout our lives.’_

**The End!**


End file.
